temple_buddhist Project Tirtha ^Beta

The Stone Chariot of Hampi stands in the courtyard of the Vijaya Vittala Temple complex on the banks of the Tungabhadra and is among the most celebrated icons of the Vijayanagara capital. Dating to the 15th–16th century Vijayanagara period, it embodies the court’s blend of devotion and engineering, and forms a centerpiece of the UNESCO‑listed Group of Monuments at Hampi.

Architecturally, the chariot is a Garuda shrine aligned to the Vittala sanctum and executed in Dravidian idiom. Though it appears monolithic, it is a masterful assembly of interlocking granite blocks with joints masked by mouldings and sculpture; traces indicate a lost brick‑and‑plaster superstructure (vimana) above. The base carries fine narrative friezes, the lotus‑patterned stone wheels were likely designed to turn (now fixed for protection), and the original team of horses is evidenced by hind‑leg remains, with the present elephants added during later restoration.

Ritually, the stone ratha mirrors wooden festival chariots, symbolizing divine movement, and anchors the wider Vittala precinct famed for its musical mandapas. In modern times, it has become a national emblem — featured on India’s ₹50 banknote, while conservation by the Archaeological Survey of India restricts touching and climbing to safeguard the sculpture for future generations.

1. Karnataka Tourism – Stone Chariot, Hampi

Map: Google Maps Location

Organization: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Hampi Circle

Project Tirtha is an academic initiative to create 3D models of heritage sites, using crowdsourced images. The word Tirtha is Sanskrit for "a place of pilgrimage", and is commonly used to refer to the sacred sites of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. Our goal is to preserve and showcase the beauty and cultural significance of heritage sites. We believe that by allowing the general public to contribute to the creation of these models, and by providing open access to these models, we can increase awareness and appreciation of these important cultural landmarks and inspire future generations to maintain them for years to come.

This project is open-source under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 and is under active development. You can find the source code on our GitHub repo. All contributions are welcome. Please read CONTRIBUTING for more details. You can report bugs or suggest features, submit images via "Contribute", or suggest heritage sites via "Request site". Please read How do I contribute? before proceeding. A slideshow with video instructions for the project can be found here, while a slidedeck presented at ACM Web3D 2023 can be found here.

Please cite the following paper if you use this software in your work:

@inproceedings{10.1145/3611314.3615904,
    author = {Shivottam, Jyotirmaya and Mishra, Subhankar},
    title = {Tirtha - An Automated Platform to Crowdsource Images and Create 3D Models of Heritage Sites},
    year = {2023},
    isbn = {9798400703249},
    publisher = {Association for Computing Machinery},
    address = {New York, NY, USA},
    url = {https://doi.org/10.1145/3611314.3615904},
    doi = {10.1145/3611314.3615904},
    booktitle = {Proceedings of the 28th International ACM Conference on 3D Web Technology},
    articleno = {11},
    numpages = {15},
    keywords = {photogrammetry, open source, digital heritage, crowdsourcing, 3D dataset},
    location = {San Sebastian, Spain},
    series = {Web3D '23}
}
            

This project utilizes open-source libraries and automated pipelines for photogrammetry (based on AliceVision) and 3D Gaussian Splatting to create 3D models from crowdsourced images of heritage sites. On the photogrammetry side, we broadly perform the steps described at AliceVision | Photogrammetry Pipeline. The generated textured mesh is denoised, decimated, and converted to a .glb file using obj2gltf. This file is optimized for web use with meshoptimizer. Finally, the 3D model is rendered in the browser using <model-viewer>.

For 3D Gaussian Splatting, we use the splatfacto implementation present in the excellent nerfstudio, which produces a Gaussian point cloud. This is then compressed and filtered and converted to .splat file for viewing on the web using a WebGL-based 3D Gaussian Splat Viewer. The fuzz / floaters present in the Gaussian Splat models are artifacts of the splatting process and are not part of the original model.

Please note that the models displayed here are low-poly, compressed versions due to web & mobile device constraints.

We thank the following individuals for their contributions to the project's development:

• Jyotirmaya Shivottam
• Anubhav Vishwakarma
• Annada Prasad Behera

We are grateful to the developers of the following open-source libraries, which help make this project a reality:

• AliceVision
• nerfstudio
• 3D Gaussian Splatting Reference (Inria)
• obj2gltf
• gltfpack
• <model-viewer>
• 3D Gaussian Splat Viewer
• 3D Gaussian Splatting Converter
• Google Fonts | Rubik
• Google Fonts | Material Icons
• Django
• jQuery
• gunicorn
• nginx
• Celery
• RabbitMQ
• OpenCV
• MANIQA
• nsfw_model
• Docker

We also thank Odisha State Archaeology for their support.

[Effective: July 15, 2023] By accessing this website or uploading images to Project Tirtha ("use"), you agree to be legally and contractually bound by these terms of use and our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to these terms or our privacy policy, do not access or use Tirtha.

• Tirtha is an academic image crowdsourcing platform specializing in heritage sites, created by Dr. Subhankar Mishra's Lab at National Institute of Science Education and Research. Uploaded images are used to create 3D models through a photogrammetry pipeline. By using Tirtha, you are contributing to this process.
• By using Tirtha, you warrant that you have legal rights to share the uploaded images, which may be used by us for creating 3D models. All images uploaded to Tirtha are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
• We reserve the right to remove inappropriate user content, including images unrelated to heritage sites, personally identifiable information, and any inappropriate content.
• We reserve the right to terminate your use of our platform for repeatedly uploading inappropriate or unrelated images, personally identifiable information, or any inappropriate content. Termination prevents further image uploads but allows access to view 3D models. We will make our best efforts to notify you of termination or if our systems flag any such content, but we are not liable for any data loss or damage that may occur as a result of such termination or flagging.
• The accuracy of 3D models depends on various factors, and we strive for accuracy, but we are not responsible for inaccuracies, errors in models, or any damage or data loss during the image upload process.
• The outputs, which include the 3D models created from images submitted to Tirtha, are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please check if your intended use aligns with this license, and contact us if unsure.
• We reserve the right to change the license on the outputs, including the 3D models, at any time, which will affect models reconstructed after the date of the license update. Check the model information in the About section for the reconstruction date.
• By using Tirtha, you agree to indemnify and hold us harmless from any claims, damages and expenses (including attorneys' fees) arising from your use of our platform. This also includes any claims, damages, or expenses arising during the image capture process. It is the sole responsibility of the user to ensure that the image capture process is safe and legal.
• We reserve the right to change these terms at any time. Material changes will be notified via email or via a message posted on the site. Your continued use of Tirtha after the effective date of the modified terms constitutes acceptance of the modified terms.
• These terms of use are governed by the laws of India, and any dispute will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.

[Effective: September 18, 2024] Please read our privacy policy carefully before using Tirtha. Do not access or use Tirtha if you do not agree with any part of this policy.

• We use Google OAuth2 for authentication of contributors, i.e., "people who upload images". This is done via Authlib's Django OAuth Client and no tracking cookies are used. Only your email address and public profile name ("personal information") are stored to identify your contributions, i.e., "sets of images uploaded by you", on this website.
• Uploaded images are stored on our servers, and the associated metadata, including EXIF data and GPS coordinates (if available), is used solely for 3D model reconstruction purposes.
• All pre-processing steps, except NSFW filtering, occur client-side on your browser or server-side on our end. We utilize local models and the Google CloudVision API for NSFW image filtering. The images are uploaded to Google servers for filtering purposes but are not stored on them.
• Your personal information and uploaded images are not sold or rented to any third party.
• Session cookies are utilized to store your login information, and they are deleted when you close your browser. We do not use other cookies or analytics tools on this website.
• Your personal information is retained as long as you have at least one contribution associated with your account. If all contributions are deleted, your personal information and account are also deleted within a reasonable amount of time, usually less than a week. You can create a new account and upload new images by reauthenticating.
• To request the deletion of your account and personal information, or some/all of your contributions, please contact us at project.tirtha@niser.ac.in. Please note that not all contributions may be deleted if they were used to create 3D models.
• We may use your personal information to contact you about the project or your contributions. We may also share your information if required by law.
• Appropriate technical and organizational measures have been implemented to protect data on our servers. However, we cannot & do not guarantee the absolute security of your information or uploaded content.
• Tirtha is an academic project, and we disclaim liability for any data loss or damage resulting from its use. Your use of this website is at your own risk, and you agree to indemnify us against any claims arising from such use.
• We reserve the right to modify this privacy policy at any time. Please refer to the "Effective" date above for the last update.