Tripont Photo Video can look back on more than 30 years. Over the past 3 decades we have been involved in countless exciting photographic projects. One of the youngest and most beautiful areas of our Heritage business turned 5 this year.
In just 5 years, we have been able to digitise works of priceless ideological and cultural value such as Gábor Egressy’s daguerreotype of Sándor Petőfi, the founding letter of the monastery of the Veszprém Valley Abbey of 1109, and the world-famous Csornai Diadem. But we have also been involved in large-scale digitisation projects, such as the processing of more than 300,000 documents of the Andrássy family legacy in the Highlands.
This year, our team reached another milestone. We were asked by the Hungarian National Museum (MNM) to digitise one of the most important symbols of Hungarian statehood, which dates back a thousand years.
The hungarian coronation mantle
The mantle was ordered by King Stephen and Queen Gizella in 1031. It is one of the most important symbols of the foundation of the state in Hungarian history, and served as the coronation robes of kings until 1916.
So it is understandable that we had to take special care throughout the entire process, which was carried out to the highest quality and in accordance with the strictest heritage protection standards.
© Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum –Tripont Foto Video Kft.- Bedő Dániel
The digitisation project has helped to revitalise the image of the MNM, with the mantle of the coronation chosen as the new symbol of the Museum. Based on their vision, the visual concept of their new image reflects the approach of the renewed museum: to present millennia of memories and values in a modern, clear and accessible way.
Technical background of the procedure
The preparation process included the use of protective equipment, dusting of all equipment used in the digitisation process and the creation of a suitable low-light environment. As this is a highly sensitive artefact, it was necessary to shoot at very low light intensities below 25 lux for reasons of protection. This is approximately the same illumination as street lighting at night.
The digitization of the almost 3 meter wide crown mantle was done with a Phase One IQ4 150 megapixel system. In order to digitize the artefact in the best possible quality, it was necessary to capture several images. To ensure pixel-perfect matching of the photographs and the necessary overlaps, the final image was composed of more than 60 exposures. To move the camera system safely over the artifact, an electrically controlled, high-precision crane was used.
It was important that the final image captured the present state of the richly embroidered, meticulously detailed fabric with full colour fidelity and a researchable quality. In addition, to be able to check for possible colour shade changes at certain intervals in the future, thanks to the FADGI 4-star quality.
We are proud to have been able to digitise the coronation robes of the Hungarian kings using internationally proven technology, the PhaseOne camera system. This commission will be a major new reference not only for Tripont but also for the Danish manufacturer.
It was an exhilarating experience and we thank you for the request!