3-D replica

3-D Replica of Tutankhamun’s Mummy

The magnificent tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun was discovered in 1922 and was presented to the public in the 1970s as part of a traveling exhibition. The treasures are once again on world tour – this time complete with a replica of Tutankhamun’s mummy. The task of recreating the king was given to Gary Staab, a prehistoric model maker, of Staab Studios. He commissioned Materialise GmbH, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany, to generate the 3-D replica.

The creation of the replica began with importing the CT scan data of Tutankhamun’s mummy into a medical image-processing program called Mimics, which created an accurate 3-D model of the mummy. A program called 3-matic, a software package for geometry pre-processing, design and optimization, was used to generate the wall thickness of the model – making a hollow model saved on material and considerably shortened the production time. Once the digital model was complete, the data were run through Magics rapid-prototyping software for the subsequent build process: from data importation to platform preparation, Magics RP optimized every step of the process. The software features unique repair functions which generate error-free STL data. Processing in Magics is a prerequisite for creating nearly perfect components for 3-D printing.

After the virtual processing step, the replica of the mummy was produced on a huge stereolithography installation (manufacturer: Materialise). The model was supported in the liquid resin bath using the e-Stage software program. This automatically generates support structures which have limited points of contact with the part. As a result, the support structures are easily removed when production is complete. Finally, Gary Staab added further details, colors and textures to match the replica to the original.

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