Taoyan inkstones are one of China’s Four Great Inkstones, carrying traditional carving skills, regional materials, and cultural memory. As mining resources and craft inheritance become harder to sustain, recording their surface form, knife marks, and ornamental details as accurate 3D data gives preservation teams a more reliable archive than photography alone.
AlphaScan captures the curved stone surface, shallow relief, and fine tool traces without contact, converting the physical inkstone into digital material that can support conservation, restoration, exhibition, and research. The scanner does not replace the craft; it helps keep the craft legible, preserving the evidence of each maker’s hand so this intangible heritage can be studied and shared for the long term.