It took Gutzon Borglum 14 years to complete the carving of Mount Rushmore, one of the world’s most iconic monuments. Sixty-nine years later, thanks to ground-breaking 3-D laser scanning technology, the granite sculpture of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln was digitally recreated within two weeks, despite difficult weather conditions—snow, fog, and thunderstorms.

From May 11–26, a team of heritage conservators and digital design experts spent hours on the Black Hills of South Dakota digitally recording the international landmark, including the Sculptor’s Studio, the Hall of Records, and the Shrine of Democracy sculpture. The mission is part of the Scottish 10, an ambitious five-year project that will use 3-D scanning to recreate five UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Scotland and five international heritage sites, with Mount Rushmore as the first international site. World Heritage Sites are places designated by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as sites of special global cultural or physical significance.

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