Cambridge University “Makes No Bones” about Using 3D Printing to Recreate Replicas

We’ve written before about using 3D printing to create artwork and artifacts.  These stories are especially interesting to us given that RapidMade has been privileged to 3D print both originals and replicas.  And apparently we are in good company…

In another brilliant example of this approach, Cambridge University is 3D scanning and printing reproductions of Ox bones.  During the Shang Dynasty in China, roughly 1339 BCE-1112 BCE, oracles would inscribe their writings on Ox bones which are being recreated for research and educational purposes. These bones provide insight into the way of life during the Shang Dynasty. Archaeologists, anthropologists, and historians alike can now safely continue to learn from the information contained in these bones while ensuring their preservation.  The university’s collection contains over 600 bones (that is a lot of scanning and printing) which will now be more readily available for study due to these replicas.