Tamagawa University Faculty of Engineering, Department of Design Science, Interaction Design Lab, Yasuaki Aoyama (4th year) and Mitsuki Kimura (3rd year) have succeeded in creating a 3D model of a part of Jomon pottery excavated in Zama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, called a "front and back face handle." The completed work was used in a ceremony in Zama City.
The "front and back face handle," discovered during water pipe replacement work in Zama City in 2022, is part of a deep bowl-shaped pottery from the middle Jomon period (approximately 5500 to 4500 years ago). It has a distinctive handle resembling a human face on both the front and back of the rim, and this type of artifact is extremely rare, with only two examples of this type reported nationwide, and is a designated important cultural property of Zama City.
The Department of Design Science, College of Engineering, Tamagawa University was approached by the Zama City Board of Education with a request to create a replica of this "front and back face handle" for use in education. Based on his experience with a similar initiative in Sagamihara City, lecturer Hirayasu of the department used the Makers Floor* at the university to provide students with a practical learning opportunity, and this collaboration was realized.
In creating the 3D model, Kimura, in the presence of the Zama City Board of Education, precisely scanned the interior cavities and other details. Making full use of the digital fabrication equipment on the Makers Floor, Aoyama used a special material that contained 20% wood, and after about 15 rounds of trial and error, they completed the model.
The Zama City Board of Education has nicknamed the double-sided face handle "Zamaron" through public entries, and awarded the namer the sculpture as a prize. In the future, they plan to create a replica of this cultural property and use it in educational settings, and will continue to work with the Department of Design Science in the Faculty of Engineering to advance concrete plans.
*An open space for manufacturing that can be used by students from all faculties, mainly the Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Arts. Assistants and technical instructors are always on hand to support students' work. There is a "digital" area where the entire process from idea/concept creation to 3D design, prototype production, and verification can be carried out on one floor, and a "machine tool" area equipped with full-scale machine tools, mainly for metal processing. It can be used freely not only for classes, but also for individual student manufacturing and joint projects across faculties.
