3D Models

Exhibit provides first-class support for interactive 3D models, allowing cultural institutions, educators, and storytellers to showcase physical artifacts, sculptures, and architectural heritage alongside traditional high-resolution 2D imagery.

Visitors can freely rotate, pan, and zoom around 3D objects on both desktop and mobile devices, while authors can frame specific camera perspectives for each step in a narrative walkthrough.

Supported Format: Binary glTF (.glb)

Exhibit supports 3D objects formatted as glTF Binary (.glb) files. GLB is the universal standard for web-based 3D content, packaging the 3D mesh geometry, materials, textures, and lighting information into a single efficient file.

You can source or export GLB models from:

• Museum & Cultural Portals: Smithsonian 3D, Europeana, and the British Museum.
• 3D Marketplaces & Communities: Sketchfab (many cultural heritage scans are freely downloadable under Creative Commons licenses).
• 3D Scanning Tools: Photogrammetry software (e.g. Polycam, RealityCapture, Metashape, or Blender).

Importing 3D Models

There are two primary ways to bring 3D models into Exhibit:

1. Via IIIF v3 Manifests

Exhibit supports 3D canvases defined within IIIF Presentation API 3.0 manifests. In a IIIF v3 manifest, a canvas points to a 3D asset with the MIME type model/gltf-binary:

{
  "id": "https://example.org/iiif/3d-canvas/1",
  "type": "Canvas",
  "width": 1000,
  "height": 1000,
  "items": [
    {
      "id": "https://example.org/iiif/3d-annotation/1",
      "type": "AnnotationPage",
      "items": [
        {
          "id": "https://example.org/iiif/3d-content/1",
          "type": "Annotation",
          "motivation": "painting",
          "body": {
            "id": "https://example.org/models/amphora.glb",
            "type": "Model",
            "format": "model/gltf-binary"
          },
          "target": "https://example.org/iiif/3d-canvas/1"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Import the manifest URL using the standard Add Item dialogue in the Exhibit Editor.

Viewing and Interacting with 3D Models

Exhibit uses Google's <model-viewer> component for smooth, hardware-accelerated 3D rendering:

Annotating 3D Models

Creating a story around a 3D object follows the same intuitive workflow as 2D images:

1. In the Exhibit Editor, navigate to the 3D model.
2. Orbit, pan, and zoom the model until you have framed the exact detail, angle, or inscription you want to highlight.
3. Write your commentary in the description panel.
4. Click the checkmark (✓) button to save the framing annotation.

Exhibit automatically records the precise camera orbit coordinates, target center, and field of view. When viewers step through your exhibit, the camera smoothly animates and transitions between each perspective.

Examples

• Dionysus (All-Media Showcase) — Explore the Attic Black-Figure Neck Amphora with 3D camera orbits and pinpoints alongside 2D images, video, and audio.