The role of digital models in cultural heritage preservation

Cultural Heritage represents an aspect of our historical memory that has suffered transformations, reductions or destructions in the last decade for different human or external factors. In addition, some lacks in the preservation of the artistic heritage, principally due to the found restrictions, led to a fall in monument valorization and in cultural system management. In this situation the research of methodologies that allow to lessen this deterioration process has became more evident: the definition of cultural and practical strategies that permit to save the information contained in the Cultural Heritage, supporting the process of valorization thorough the application of different representation and visualization instruments. The 3D acquisition and modeling process represent a possible solution because it allow to generate the digital mould of a real artifact, virtually freezing the actual formal and material aspects. The exploitation of digital capacity can increase the comprehension and the valorization of the monuments, supporting the Heritage management; at the end the virtual representation represents an interesting and shared analysis instrument for experts. Starting from general observations on the use of these techniques in Cultural Heritage field, the paper presents two case studies that contain analogies in the approach and purpose: the 3D acquisition and modeling of Pompeii Forum and San Giovanni in Conca church in Milano.