Studies in Digital Heritage Publication: Nartang Monastery 3-D Reconstruction

We are pleased to announce that the paper “Monastic Architectural Reconstruction From a 1962 U-2 Aerial Photograph of Nartang in Central Tibet,” published in Studies in Digital Heritage, is now publicly accessible.

The article (Ryavec, K., Bhum, Y., & Nyandak, T., 2025) presents a case study of Nartang Monastery, synthesizing historical research, archival aerial imagery, and architectural modeling to examine differences between the original monastery and its later reconstruction following destruction.

The paper features Studio Nyandak’s development of data-driven 3D architectural models derived from declassified 1962 U-2 aerial photography, using shadow analysis, georeferencing, and orthorectification to reconstruct building volumes and campus layout. The stylization of these digital models were informed by a wide range of Tibetan, Chinese, and Western primary sources, including historical guidebooks, architectural floor plans, thangka paintings, travel accounts, and archaeological surveys. Together, the methodology demonstrates an alternative approach to digital heritage modeling for sites that are no longer extant and lack sufficient photographic documentation, contributing new tools for the study and preservation of threatened cultural landscapes.