Nevis Digital Twin: Photogrammetry and Immersive Visualization of Historical Sites

TL;DR

This paper introduces a multimodal workflow for digitally preserving and reconstructing at-risk Nevis historical sites using photogrammetry and immersive VR, balancing professional accuracy with accessibility.

Contribution

It presents a novel data acquisition and reconstruction method combining photogrammetry and 3D Gaussian splatting for digital heritage preservation.

Findings

Camera height and operator trajectory affect data quality.

Mesh reconstruction and 3D Gaussian splatting offer different documentation modalities.

Immersive VR environments enable scalable digital heritage access.

Abstract

In this work, we present a multimodal data acquisition workflow for the digital preservation and virtual reconstruction of at-risk historical sites in the island of Nevis. Facing threats from coastal erosion, rising sea levels, and aggressive vegetation, the archaeological heritage of Nevis requires documentation strategies that bridge the gap between high-cost professional surveying and consumer accessibility. Experimental test compared acquisition variables, specifically camera height (1m vs. 3m) and operator trajectory against high-resolution control data. Moreover, we explore the virtual reconstruction between mesh reconstruction and 3D gaussian splatting to serve as different modalities for documentation. The resulting data is fused into immersive virtual reality (VR) environments, offering a scalable, non-proprietary model for democratizing digital heritage in the Caribbean.