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OptoClones at the Byzantine & Christian Museum (ΒΧΜ) of Athens

OptoClone from the "Mytilini Treasure" (7^th c. AD)

The use of display holography for visual recording of objects of cultural interest and their further presentation to wide public has already been applied on multiple occasions since the early 80s. Scythian treasures, religious relics, archaeological and anthropological findings as well as historical works of art have been made available for holographic recording from famous Museums such as the British Museum in London or Hermitage in Leningrad of the (then) USSR. However, the limitations of the technology at that time and -in particular- the lack of realistic representation mostly on account of their monochromatic image did not allow the further establishment of their use in spite of the early expectations.

The Hellenic Institute of Holography (HiH) has proudly announced at the latest OPTO2014 conference (San Francisco, USA, part of SPIE Photonics West) the implementation of its HoloCultura program in the holographic recording of original artifacts of the Athens Byzantine & Christian Museum (BXM). For the first time in Greece -but equally in a world's first- full-colour holograms recorded in situ with the use of proprietary portable equipment are being exhibited as part of the permanent collection of the Museum in the place of original objects for the period that these are on loan abroad. Within the framework of its various collaborations with third-party organizations, the Byzantine & Christian Museum of Athens  has cooperated with ...

Read more: A World's First

A unique visual experience for all age groups

After 4 months of intense preparations, the official opening of the exhibition titled "LIGHT MYSTERIES: Holograms, 3D and Optical Illusions" organized by the Hellenic Institute of Holography (HiH) at the fabulous Natural History Museum of the Univ. of Crete in Herakleion took place. The inauguration of the show was done by the Governor of the Region of Crete Mr. Stavros Arnaoutakis in the presence of representatives of local administrative and academic communities

Such an exhibition takes place for the first time in Greece -if not internationally- as its content extends further than strictly holography by combining 3D stereoscopic imaging with education in basic optical principles through optical paradoxes. The Museum of Optics (Optimus) of the reknown (IFMO) Univ. of St. Petersburg, Russia  ...

Read more: "Light Mysteries" in Crete

A series of int'l presentations by HiH

20 years later: prof. V. Markov and Alk. Lembessis

Early Feb 2013 marked a period of 3 years since the day when the Hellenic Institute of Holography launched its ambitious self-financed program HoloCultura for the holographic recording of objects of cultural interest; and the 6 six months preceding this point in time witnessed a series of consecutive international presentations on the results of such works. 

Starting from the latest event on Feb 4th, 2013 at OPTO2013  in San Francisco (USA) during the annual conference  SPIE Photonics West and within the thematic framework of Practical Holography XXVII: Materials and Applications, HiH presented to an international scientific audience of holographers the results of its experimental works related to its intelligent HoLoFoS systems developed for the illumination of full-colour analog holograms and digital holographic prints. An abstract of this presentation as well as the full paper can be found in the published Proceedings of this conference (SPIE Volume 8644) available at SPIE Digital Library whereas the relevant Powerpoint presentation can be viewed by selecting the following link.

HoLoFoS: An optimized LED illumination system for color reflection hologram display         (PDF, 3.62 Mb).

At the side of this conference, the usual informal meeting of the Technical Holography Group took place under the guidance of Prof. Hans Bjelkhagen, in which attendants are given the opportunity to witness from close the latest developments in the area of display holography. During this meeting, HiH presented the latest generation working prototype of its intelligent LED illuminant HoLoFoS (v4) and was able to collect invaluable feedback from its experimental use with display holograms of various types submitted by participants. Overview images from this model of illuminant can be seen by ...

Read more: Public Exposure

Commemorative Exhibition of Historical Maps

Chief-of-Staff Gen. M. Kostarakos and HiH Director A. Lembessis

In the context of national celebrations on the 100th anniversary of the liberation of the city of Thessaloniki during the 1912 Balkan Wars, the Hellenic Institute of Holography participated in the exhibition organized at the War Museum of the city titled 'Historical Maps of the Period 1912-1913'. This exhibition was officially opened on Sep 7th by the Minister of Makedonia/Thrace Mr. Th. Karaoglou in the presence of Minister of Environment & Climatic Change Mr. Ev. Livieratos, of the City Mayor Mr. J. Boutaris and of the Chief of Greek Defence Gen. Mich. Kostarakos; it lasted until the end of Nov 2012 after several extensions on account of its popularity with visitors. Historical exhibits from the National Geographical Service of the Greek Army, from the National Center of Chartographic Heritage and from private collectors (such as Mr. Garyfalou, Demertzis, Papaioannou and Nikoltsios) were enriched with the state-of the-art contribution of HiH in terms of digital holographic maps, auto-stereoscopic monitors and optical clones of memorabilia. Photos from the opening ceremony can be found at the official webpage of the Hellenic National Defence whereas a brief description of the historical exhibits can be read here (Greek only).

Among the various exhibits, the OptoClone^© (optical clone) of a tin model of an EVZON soldier in the national 1912 uniform recorded as a full-colour analog hologram attracted particular interest. The original strictly collectible model was manufactured in Spain in a very limited number of copies especially for this unique occasion and for the exclusive use of the Hellenic National Defence Gerenal Staff. Its visual capture on a commemorative hologram was done by Andreas SARAKINOS at the HiH Z-Lab with the use of the proprietary transportable setup ZZZyclops and this unique item was donated to the Chief of Staff of The Greek Defence Gen. M. Kostarakos in an official meeting following the closure of the exhibition.

Read more: Holograms at the Thessaloniki War Museum