Using Digital Technology for the Sustainable Preservation of Clothing Heritage: A Virtual Reconstruction of the 1848/49 Uniform

Abstract

This work deals with the sustainable reconstruction of the uniform of the National Guard of Maribor from 1848/49 with the aim of developing the pattern design of the jacket and trousers of which it consists of and making a virtual replica of it. The original uniform of the Maribor National Guard, which can no longer be restored and/or conserved, is kept in the Maribor Regional Museum, Slovenia. The reconstruction of the pattern design of the jacket and trousers was based on historical sources, analyses, measurements and the decomposition of the uniform. The virtual reconstruction of the uniform pattern design was carried out using the Optitex PDS 3D V11 programme. The construction proportions of the uniform’s basic pattern design were analysed to determine the basic body dimensions of the wearer of the jacket and trousers and to create 3D body models of the wearers using the standard 3D body model of the software used. This made it possible to create an accurate “3D body model–clothing” system that realistically represents the virtual replica of the uniform. The results of this research help to preserve, understand and explore the cultural heritage of clothing in a sustainable way and make it accessible to the public.

1. Introduction

Culture and cultural heritage are recognised as core values that enable the growth and development of interdisciplinary socio-political awareness. Accordingly, the EU has adopted numerous strategies and initiatives, such as the Council Resolution on the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023–2026 [1] and the European Framework for Action on Cultural Heritage [2] as well as the New European Agenda for Culture [3], which constitute the fundamental document on the importance of culture and cultural heritage. The Agenda emphasises the importance of raising awareness of cultural heritage, both for its social and economic benefits. It also emphasises the role of preserving cultural heritage and cultural diversity as an important pillar of EU values, which form the basis for strengthening a just society and improving living standards. The importance of such improvement is also recognised by the European Green Deal [4] and the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development [5], which sets out the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs include a set of indicators and guidelines for the better realisation of changes that lead to overall well-being—environmentally, economically and socially. Cultural heritage is recognised in particular by SDG 11—Sustainable Cities and Communities. Its importance is also emphasised and explained in a separate document: SDG 11.4—Culture and cultural heritage for more sustainable, inclusive and open cities and societies [6]. In this document, numerous case studies of practises around the world show that local cultural heritage is the basis for community building and thus for citizen participation in various initiatives such as sustainable development. Cultural heritage raises citizens’ awareness and enables greater participation in local practises, which tend to be inherently more environmentally friendly than modern practises. In addition, cultural heritage has proven to be a source of great economic benefits for local citizens and cultural institutions such as museums.

An important aspect of cultural heritage is the heritage of clothing. Clothing has always been a symbol of belonging through its visual appearance and is therefore an invaluable heritage of humanity, containing information about social, political and environmental characteristics of historical periods [7]. The main problem with the preservation of garments is their inevitable deterioration. Over the years, the materials of clothing deteriorate to such an extent that they can no longer be restored and/or conserved. The garments are therefore stored in museums’ repositories and are no longer visible to most people. To this end, the specific characteristics of historical textiles (e.g., raw material, spinning/twisting direction of the yarns, twisting angle, linear density of the yarns, type of fabric weave, fabric count, thickness, weight and dyes) and the ageing process of textiles (the degradation of fibres and dyes) are studied in detail in order to obtain information on the availability of resources and the technological knowledge of a culture, as can be found in sources [8,9,10,11], for example. Such research can only be carried out on original pieces of historical textiles. In order to preserve the heritage of clothing for future generations, sustainable conservation through the digitisation of historical garments is of great importance and is also supported by the EU in the context of the report Digitisation, Online Accessibility and Digital Preservation [12]. Despite the advanced digital technologies available for analysis and sustainable preservation, deteriorated clothing heritage is mostly preserved only in the form of photographs, drawings, paintings or similar graphics and clothing records. As a result, much information about the individual historical garments is lost. Therefore, authentic virtual replicas of the original garments are needed to preserve information about the clothing. Virtual replicas are accurate representations of the garment image based on the construction of the garment pattern design and the characteristic parameters of the fabrics incorporated into the garment, as well as the visual and aesthetic characteristics of the garment on a 3D body model or a virtual replica of the person who wore the garment. However, it should be noted that there are also limitations when digitising historical clothing, especially with regard to the physical and mechanical properties of the fabric, as we need a smaller or larger fabric sample to study them. For the same reason, the physical and mechanical properties of the fabric and the dyes with which it was coloured cannot be determined using the ageing method of similar modern fabrics, and the colour of the original reflects the condition of the aged dye. In particular, museums avoid cutting fabric samples from garments for this type of research in order to preserve the original as a whole if the sample cannot be cut from the inside of the garment (e.g., seam allowance). For this purpose, researchers use information about the fabric properties for the virtual reconstruction (a) from historical books such as fibre content, type and weight (if available for the garment under study); (b) by simply testing and measuring real historical fabrics cut from the garment, such as row material, the thickness of the fabric or the weave and the count of fabrics; or (c) by comparing the appearance of the virtual replica with a historical painting [13,14]. On the other hand, digitisation is not only the only available solution for the preservation of historical garments but also a form of more environmentally friendly preservation.

Virtual replicas of historical garments preserve the integrity of the originals and reduce the need for physical handling, which can accelerate wear and deterioration, extending the life of the original pieces. In addition, researchers, educators and the general public can study these garments without geographical or physical restrictions. This also allows for a more environmentally friendly alternative of education, as no travelling to the museum is required, resulting in less CO₂ emissions. In addition, the creation of virtual replicas is a great way to reproduce historical garments in a more sustainable way, since physical materials such as fabrics and dyes are no longer needed, and the water consumption and the emission of hazardous chemicals associated with the preservation processes can be significantly reduced [15,16]. On the other hand, virtual replicas contain comprehensive information about the garment pattern designs and fabrics as well as the visual characteristics of the garments [17], so that physical replicas can be easily created in the future when they are needed for museum exhibitions. This will ensure that the transition to physical replicas is quicker and more efficient, with optimised use of materials and minimal wastage due to the pattern designs already in place, avoiding the trial-and-error process normally associated with making replicas [16,18]. By allowing historians, pattern makers and textile designers to make multiple iterations and adjustments digitally, material waste is minimised, and the amount of waste destined for landfill is reduced [19]. Since some historical garments of the same era are made from the same material, e.g., men’s uniforms, fabric cutting can be optimised by creating cutting plans for several historical garments (e.g., theatre or film uniforms), thus avoiding much of the waste, and the resulting waste can be used for other purposes as part of the zero-waste concept [20,21]. Consequently, the virtual replicas of historical garments are in line with sustainable practises and environmental protection efforts, as resource consumption, waste generation and carbon emissions are reduced. Life cycle assessment studies of textiles and clothing have shown that there are significant environmental problems, particularly in relation to water consumption, soil degradation and pollution from textile dyeing and finishing processes [22,23]. In addition, the production of clothing contributes significantly to CO₂ emissions and the release of microplastics and has a significant chemical footprint due to the extensive use of chemicals [24,25]. The use of virtual replicas of garments—virtual models of physical garments—offers a promising solution to these problems, including in the field of clothing heritage. Although the production of virtual replicas requires a certain amount of energy, most of the environmental impact of virtual replicas arises from the storage of data, e.g., in the cloud or on local servers. By conducting life cycle assessments or other environmental analyses based on the virtual replicas of historical garments before the actual prototyping, it is possible to predict potential environmental impacts of the physical replica, e.g., related to material selection and dyeing processes, and compare them with the impacts that would result from the data storage of the virtual replica [26]. Although cloud-based storage is generally more environmentally friendly than local servers due to better optimisation of power and cooling requirements [27], large server farms still consume significant amounts of energy and are associated with noise pollution and high water consumption for cooling [27,28]. To reduce some of these burdens, the largest data centres have committed to becoming water-friendly by focusing on recycling water rather than relying on new water sources [27]. Nonetheless, there are many decisions being made by digital pioneers to maximise the sustainability benefits of virtual replicas, such as minimising data storage requirements using the smallest files possible and avoiding unnecessary replication that would otherwise lead to additional energy consumption [29]. Despite these challenges, virtual replicas are generally a more sustainable option than physical prototypes, especially if the environmental impact of the supporting digital infrastructure is carefully considered. We also need to distinguish between long-term preservation and permanent preservation. In cases where historic garments can be repaired in one way or another, virtual replicas are not the best solution for obvious reasons. For many historical garments, repair is not possible due to the severe damage. Therefore, only a completely new physical replica or a virtual replica can be considered. The main advantage of virtual replicas for the environment is that the virtual data are usually permanent, and the replicas are therefore permanently preserved, whereas physical replicas need to be repaired and eventually require a completely new replica with new materials and processes.

1.1. State of the Art in the Sustainable Preservation of Clothing Heritage

Virtual replicas of historical garments show the pattern design of the garment, the visual and aesthetic features and the fabrics used in historical garments (e.g., wool, silk, linen, etc.). They are created on the basis of historical garments in museums or private collections or on the basis of paintings, drawings and records of the characteristics of garment pattern designs from a particular era [30,31] and virtually sewn together into individual garments or clothing systems with the help of special software. Such virtual replicas can be used to carry out simulations that demonstrate the drape of textile materials. However, the authenticity of these simulations is mainly determined by the subjective selection of the textile material and its mechanical properties from the software database. When examining historical garments, we can identify different types of clothing that were intentionally made for a specific person. Nevertheless, the pattern designs for virtual replicas are often created based on general features of garment pattern designs, which means that important features that were specific to a particular garment may be lost. Three-dimensional scanning of historical garments is used for this purpose [32]. However, this technique cannot recognise the hidden areas that are typical especially in complex garments, e.g., skirts that are draped, so an important amount of information about the garment is lost.

In order to create authentic virtual replicas of garments that contain all the information about the garment, the replica must contain a realistic pattern design, and the textile material chosen for the simulation must mimic the realistic physical and mechanical properties of the authentic textiles. In particular, parameters such as fibre raw material, weave type, thread count and yarn diameter are also crucial for the simulation of realistic physical and mechanical properties. Consequently, such replicas allow for much more realistic simulations. For the analysis of historical garments, the methods used to examine the textiles must be non-destructive, which conflicts with standardised approaches for determining physical and mechanical properties [33,34] and other commonly used techniques for measuring textiles: Fabric Assurance by Simple Testing (FAST) and the Kawabata Evaluation System (KES), in which textiles are cut into test samples. However, it can be pointed out that there are non-destructive and minimally invasive methods to characterise the dyes of historical textiles, such as desorption electrospray ionisation (DESI), multispectral imaging (MSI) and fibre optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS) [35,36,37].

Based on the investigation of the current state of the art in the sustainable preservation of garments through the use of digital technologies, we can categorise the existing studies into four thematic groups based on the main research aspect, Figure 1. To investigate the current state of the art on the topic of digital preservation of historical garments, databases such as WOS, Scopus, Google Scholar and ProQuest Dissertations & Theses were used for studies by testing different combinations of the following keywords: histor*/archeologic*/heritage/cultural, textile*/cloth*/fabric/costume*/garment*/clothing models/clothing style*, replica*/clone/reduplication/twin, reconstruct*/recreat*/remake/restor*/preserv*/digitalization/digitalisation, digital/virtual/computerized/computerised/simulate*/computer-generated/3D. Finally, we filtered out 267 articles that seemed relevant to us. After studying the articles, 60 of them proved to be relevant to the overall topic of the digital reconstruction of historical garments. Most studies deal with the reconstruction of historical textiles based on the modelling of clothing or accessories using various CAD software (61%). A smaller proportion of studies are concerned with the reconstruction of historical garments using 3D scanning (18%), and in recent years, the use of CT scanning for research into historical textiles has become increasingly common (14%). The smallest remaining proportion of studies dealing with the sustainable preservation of clothing heritage does not include the use of digital technologies. The most relevant articles are highlighted below.

Research on the sustainable preservation of clothing heritage focuses on the analysis of colours, fabric patterns and clothing proportions. On this basis, researchers have constructed garment pattern designs that were assembled into clothing systems based on drawings and paintings [31,38,39,40,41], opera costumes [42], archaeological clothing finds [43,44,45] and other remains of clothing heritage [46].

Researchers working on the virtual reconstruction of textile artefacts using CAD software have constructed 2D garment pattern designs and simulated a comparable approximation of the 3D shape of the historical garment based on the physical and mechanical properties determined. For this purpose, researchers have used ARCSim software to model and simulate the toga [47]. Using Autodesk Inventor software, researchers have modelled male armour [48], which was also modelled using Unreal Engine software [49]. Moskvin et al. [50] developed patterns for a skirt based on previously modelled crinoline and its cross-sections. Realistic patterns of historical clothing were also studied by Kuzmichev et al. [51] and Zhang and Kuzmichev [52], who reconstructed male suits using data from body measurements from the historical period. Moskvin et al. [53] developed clothing patterns based on a 3D-scanned model of a men’s suit by transferring characteristic points from the 3D suit model into 2D. Using 3D scanning technology, the digitisation of a robe, shoes and a hat was successfully carried out [32].

To achieve the best possible results in the visualisation and simulation of virtual replicas, researchers have explored the possibilities of selecting different textile materials from software databases [13,14], or they have entered new data into the database corresponding to the actual artefact [54]. For the realistic visualisation of silk fabrics, the digital tool Virtual Loom was developed as part of the SILKNOW project [55,56,57,58,59], which also enables the 3D printing of reconstructed textures [60]. Software databases for the simulation of textiles and garments usually do not contain enough textile materials to find the best approximation of real textiles. For this reason, researchers [61] have emphasised the importance of understanding the textile materials used and have focused on visualising historical textiles at the yarn level [62], e.g., visualising the remaining artefacts of women’s clothing from the Roman period [63].

Advanced analyses of textile artefacts were performed by Calvert et al. [64], using computed tomography (CT) in a case with the micro-CT scanning of lace samples. Iacconi et al. [65], Karjalainen et al. [66] and Lipkin et al. [67] have also successfully analysed small archaeological findings of textiles using micro-CT.

In the context of the sustainable preservation of clothing heritage, uniforms such as military uniforms have a special place, as they bear witness to the roots, development and significance of a nation. Therefore, uniforms are usually one of the most important parts of the cultural clothing heritage preserved by museums around the world. The largest collection of uniforms in Slovenia can be found in the Maribor Regional Museum [68]. The uniform collection consists of military and civilian uniforms. It contains a collection of more than 3400 items from the beginning of the 19th century to modern uniforms of the military and civilian services in uniform. The collection includes clothing, footwear, headgear, equipment and many other accessories. An Austrian cuirassier helmet, an Austrian hussar bag with the monogram of Emperor Franz I and a parade cuirassier breastplate are kept in the oldest group of objects. A large part of the collection consists of uniforms from the second half of the 19th century (up to 1918), which characterise the colourful world of Austro-Hungarian uniforms of the individual troop types, the navy, the generals, the guard and the artillery [68].

1.2. Uniform of the Slovenian National Guard

As in other countries that were formerly of Austria, the creation of the National Guard in Slovenia is linked to the revolution of 1848/49. The importance and role of this guard are well known, while the external appearance of the National Guard uniform has only been briefly touched upon by historians. The origin and development of the uniform of the Slovenian National Guard was described by Mr Sergej Vrišer in an article entitled Uniforms of the National Guard in Slovenian 1848/49 for the newspaper “Newspaper for history and ethnography” [69]. The main tasks of the National Guard were to ensure public order and peace in the country, to protect the monarchical state order and laws and defend the country against external enemies. The guard was subordinate to the civil administration—the Ministry of the Interior—or the heads of the individual regional administrations [69].

In today’s Slovenian regions, the uniform was worn according to the usual and well-known regulations that came from Vienna. The uniform of the National Guard was only in use for a short time, so that it quickly fell into oblivion [69]. Figure 2 shows an illustration of the uniforms of the Slovenian National Guard in Ljubljana.

The jackets worn by the infantry units were French blue. They reached just above the knees. They had high collars and two rows of buttons. The jacket was characterised by red decorative piping cord tape sewn into the seams. Small pads were sewn into the sleeve seams at the shoulders. The trousers were long and wide and of a Russian grey colour. They also had a red decorative piping cord tape sewn into the side seams. The cloak was black and grey in colour and had no decorations. It had a soft collar, two patch pockets and six buttons in a row, and it reached just below the knees. The individual ranks could be recognised by the patches on the collar. Non-commissioned officers wore a yellow or white woollen patch; sergeants, two patches; lieutenants, a gold or silver patch; first lieutenants, two patches; and captains had the same embroidery on their collars. The infantry units wore a leather and studded hat as headgear, which resembled the headgear of the French colonial units. It was decorated with silver and red cockades and different coloured ponytails: black for soldiers, red for drummers and trumpeters and white for musicians. Metal numbers indicated the district and the company or troop. There were Roman numerals for the district designation and Arabic numerals for the company designation. Decorative belts were also sewn onto the hat [69].

The uniforms of the cavalry had the same colours of jacket, trousers and patches as those of the infantry, but a slightly different cut. They were shorter and had a single-breasted fastening. Instead of shoulder pads, the cavalry wore broad silver semicircular and scale-shaped epaulettes [69]. Their headgear was a helmet decorated with leather and silver fittings with a peak modelled on the Prussian pickelhaube.

The Viennese rules of the uniform were also followed in Maribor. They wore the prescribed uniform of dark blue jacket and grey trousers, Figure 3, with the only difference being that instead of hats, they wore leather cockades with a double-headed eagle and a silver red cockade with a cream-coloured ponytail [69].

In addition to the Viennese rules, there were also regional instructions for the details of the uniforms, especially from models from the provincial capitals. For example, the decisions for the Styrian regions were mainly made in Graz. There were no Academic Legion units in Slovenia, so we find Slovenian students mainly in the Academic Legion in Vienna and Graz. Only student companies within the National Guard were allowed. In addition to the student uniforms described above, national symbols were also of great importance. There was a dispute between Slovenian and German students in Graz. Therefore, the citizens of Graz called on the students of both nationalities that the Germans should wear red, gold and black on their cockades and sleeve patches, while the Slovenes should wear red, white and blue. All students were expected to respect the German flag with white and green Styrian ribbons. The dispute and internal division between the guards was also a problem in Maribor. For this reason, the commander of the student company, Prof. R. G. Puff, banned both the German and Slovenian tricolour and only allowed the wearing of the Styrian white and green cockade [69].

The uniform of the National Guard of Maribor from the years 1848/49 is kept in the depot of the Maribor Regional Museum, Slovenia [68]. The uniform has been restored and conserved several times in the past. Due to the degradation of the textile materials incorporated into the uniform, it is no longer possible to restore and/or conserve it in such a way that it can serve as an exhibition object. This research is based on initial investigations into the virtual reconstruction of the uniform under consideration [70]. With the aim of sustainably preserving the clothing heritage for future generations, this study aimed to carry out a virtual reconstruction of the uniform of the Maribor National Guard from 1848/49 using 3D technologies and non-destructive analyses methods (i.e., descriptive analysis of the construction of the uniform, and quantitative analyses for the decomposition of the uniform) so that it can serve as a virtual 3D exhibition exhibit.

2. Methods

For the virtual reconstruction of historical clothing, it is necessary to know (a) the construction of the garment and thus the pattern pieces of the garment, both for the base material and for the linings, interlinings, fusible interlinings, fillings, etc.; (b) the 3D body model representing the person wearing the garment; (c) the raw material composition and the weave of all textiles incorporated into the garment and thus their physical–mechanical properties, which, in addition to the garment pattern design, influence a realistic 3D simulation of the drape of the garment; and (d) the visual features such as auxiliary materials (buttons, zips, ribbons, elastics, clips, etc.), the top stitching of the garment, the colour, texture and pattern of the textile, etc.

The inclusion of all these factors makes it possible to sustainably preserve the clothing heritage in a digital environment as virtual replicas. To do this, it is necessary to carry out a series of analysis methods on historical garments, which must be as non-destructive as possible in order to fully preserve the original garment.

2.1. An Analysis of the Construction of the Uniform of the Maribor National Guard from 1848/49

The first step in the virtual reconstruction of the uniform was a thorough inspection, during which the uniform and its details were photographed in order to analyse the structure of the uniform descriptively. The uniform consists of a dark blue jacket and darker grey trousers, Figure 4. The photographs show extensive degradation to the textiles of the uniform and large areas of uniform conservation. The jacket and trousers were not worn by one and the same person, as even at first glance, they are clearly different in the width of the waist.

The jacket consists of a fitted upper part and an A-line bottom part, Figure 4. They are separated by a seam at the waist. The jacket has a stand-up collar into which a decorative red piping cord tape is sewn and is slightly rounded in the centre of the front upper part, Figure 4a. Small pads in the shoulder area and a decorative red twisted cord were sewn into the sleeve cap, Figure 4a. The shoulder seam of the jacket is moved to the back. The jacket has a double-breasted fastening from the neckline to the waist. Each row contains nine shiny grey metal buttons. As on the collar, a red piping cord tape is also sewn into the front seam of the jacket. A green and white cockade is attached to the left side of the jacket at chest height. Two princess seams run down the back of the jacket from the armhole to the waist seam; these seam lines continue in the seam line of the lower part of the jacket, Figure 4b.

The sleeves are narrow and slightly curved at the elbow line, Figure 4a,b. The length of the sleeve has a cuff with a vent in the back sleeve seam, which is closed with a button identical to the button on the front of the jacket. A red piping cord tape is sewn into the vent of the cuff and the top seam of the cuff, Figure 4a. The sleeve seam runs from the armhole on the back a few centimetres below the princess seam to the centre of the sleeve, which continues from the elbows to the length of the sleeve as a centre sleeve seam.

The lower part of the jacket is without special features at the front, while its rear part is widened in a curved shape Figure 4b. The centre back of the jacket has an overlapping flap with a seam line into which an inner pocket with a decorative flap and two buttons is inserted, Figure 4b. A red piping cord tape is sewn into the edge of the pocket flap and the seam of the back flap.

The jacket is fully lined with a thin, dark grey lining, while the sleeves of the jacket are lined with a brown-coloured, thin and smooth fabric. The latter is probably necessary to make it easier to put on the jacket with very narrow sleeves.

The entire front upper part of the jacket is reinforced on the inside with a system of interlinings and filling in three thicknesses, Figure 5a. The photo in Figure 5b shows a system of at least three interlinings with filling (hereinafter referred to as the jacket reinforcement) inside the damaged part of the jacket (armhole seam).

Reinforcements give the jacket an extremely stable and full shape in the chest and shoulder area and under the armhole. Figure 5a shows the layering of reinforcements of different thicknesses up to the fastening in the centre of the front part (thick, medium and thin reinforcement). On the back, the jacket has a thin reinforcement in the shoulder area and a medium-thickness reinforcement on the side. Based on the touch of the jacket, it can also be assumed that an interlining is used to achieve a stable shape of the collar, buttoning area and cuffs of the jacket.

The trousers have a straight pattern design. They have an evenly wide belt at the front, to which two buttons are sewn on the left and right for attaching straps, Figure 4c,d. Inside the trousers, the fly is fastened with four buttons and an eye and hook at the waist. Pockets are set into the side seams of the trousers, the pocket lines had decorative stitching. A red piping cord tape is sewn into the side seams of the trousers from the pocket to the length. The inside of the belt, the fly and the pocket bags are made from textile materials other than the basic fabric of the trousers, Figure 4c,d.

On the back of the trousers, the belt is much higher in the centre than on the front, with a triangular cut-out in the middle, Figure 4c,d. It has the shape of a yoke that tapers toward the side seams to the width of the waist at the front. A small belt with a buckle is sewn onto the back in the centre of the waist to adjust the waist of the trousers, Figure 4d. There is a small welt pocket in the lower belt seam on the right side of the trousers. In the area of the crotch seam toward the inside seam of the trousers, the trousers have a sewn-in pattern piece made of a thicker textile material to reinforces the crotch and the seat part of the trousers (hatched area in Figure 6b). It is assumed that the trouser belt and fly are reinforced with an interlining.

The uniform was sewn entirely by hand.

2.2. Decomposition of the Uniform Pattern Design of the Maribor National Guard of 1848/49

In order to perform a virtual reconstruction of the uniform, non-destructive methods were used to dissect the pattern design of the uniform and to determine all base and auxiliary materials incorporated into the uniform. It should be exposed that the museum was unable to provide small pieces of fabrics from the uniform for this study so that we could examine the fabrics in detail. The uniform is so badly damaged that no invasive intervention was carried out to preserve the original. A measuring tape and a sliding tape were used to measure the dimensions and thicknesses of the uniform in the reinforcement areas of the uniform as well as the auxiliary materials. In addition, a Datacolor MicroFlash 200D portable spectrophotometer (Datacolor: Lucerne, Switzerland) (Pulsed Xenon illumination source, filtered to approximate D65, wavelength range: 400–700 nm, wavelength resolution: 2 nm, reporting interval: 10 nm, aperture configuration: ultra-small area, illuminated: 6.5 mm, view: 2.5 nm) was used to determine the colours of the uniform, so that the virtual replica also visually reflects the aesthetically authentic appearance. The L*a*b* values were determined and converted into RGB values. Ageing processes may have changed the colours of the uniform, so the current state was recorded.

An analysis of the construction of the uniform pattern design was carried out on the basis of the construction sketches of the jacket and trousers. The jacket and trousers were precisely measured. The most important dimensions were noted on the construction sketches of the jacket and trousers, as shown in Figure 6. The dimensions required for the construction of the basic pattern designs of the jacket and trousers were measured. At the same time, the measurements required for computer modelling were also taken, such as the jacket’s scye depth, back length, shoulder length, sleeve length and length of the model, width over the shoulders, chest and waist circumferences, length of the upper part of the jacket at the centre front and back and at the side, horizontal and vertical button spacing, upper and lower collar circumferences and collar heights, length of the sleeve vent, cuff height and width at the lower and upper edges.

Table 1. Dimensions for the construction of the basic pattern design of the uniform jacket.

Measure Name	Label	Basic Body Meas. (cm)	Equations for Calc. of Prop. Measures [71]	Construction Measure (cm)
Body height	BH	unknown
Chest circumference	CC	unknown		93.0
Waist circumference	WC	unknown		78.0
Hips circumference	HC	unknown
Back width	BW		2/10 CC + (0.5 to 1.5 cm)	16.7
Chest width	CW		2/10 CC + (1.0 to 2.0 cm)	17.2
Armhole width	ArW		1/8 CC + (2.5 to 3.5 cm)	12.6
			CC = 81.0 cm; EA = 12.0 cm
Neck width	NW		1/10·1/2 CC + 3.0 cm	7.05
Shoulder blades height	SBH		1/8 CC + (11.5 to 12.5 cm)	21.6
Scye depth	SD		SBH + (1.0 to 2.0 cm)	22.6
Back length	BL			45.0
Sleeve length	SlL			64.0
Shoulder length	ShL			15.0
Sleeve armhole circ.	SAC	control measure		40.0
Model length	ML			91.0

Note: The numbers in bold indicate the value used for the calculation.

shows the dimensions of the jacket for the construction of the basic pattern design, while

Table 2. Dimensions for the construction of the basic pattern design of uniform trousers.

Measure Name	Label	Basic Body Meas. (cm)	Equations for Calc. of Prop. Measures [71]	Construction Measure (cm)
Body height	BH	unknown
Waist circumference	WC	unknown		98.0
Hips circumference	HC	unknown		104.0
Outside trousers length	OTL			100.0
Inside trousers length	ITL			70.0
Knee height	KH		½ ITL + 1/10 ITL	42.0
Crotch depth	CD		OTL − ITL	30.0
Front trouser width	FTW		¼ HC + (0.0 to 0.5 cm)	24.5
Back trouser width	BTW		¼ HC + (3.00 to 3.5 cm)	27.5
			HC = 98.0 cm; EA = 6.0 cm
Total crotch width	TCW		¼ HC − (3.0 to 4.0 cm)	21.5
Front crotch width	FCW		1/10·1/2 HC + 1.0 cm	5.9
Back crotch width	BCW		TCW − FCW	15.6
Total BTW	TBTW		BTW + BCW	43.6
Circumference of the trouser length				44.0

Note: The numbers in bold indicate the ease allowance used for comfort.

shows the dimensions of the trousers for the construction of the basic pattern design. The basic pattern designs of the jacket and trousers were constructed according to the book Historische Schnitte [71], on a construction system by M. Müller and Sohn, and their modelling is based on the measurements and decomposition of the uniform. Based on Figure 4, it can be assumed that the pattern design of the jacket (upper part) are fitted to the body. The main body dimensions of the person who wore the jacket are not known, i.e., body height (BH), chest circumference (CC), waist circumference (WC) or hip circumference (HC). Therefore, some measured dimensions that define the main body dimensions with an ease allowance are given as construction measures, especially at the chest line and waistline, where the reinforcements of the jacket are located, i.e., the CC and WC, Table 1. Certain measured dimensions were used directly to construct the jacket pattern design: back length (BL), shoulder length (SL), sleeve length (SL), sleeve armhole circumference (SAC) and model length (ML). Other construction measures were calculated from the measured dimensions using equations for calculating proportional body measures according to source [71], Table 1. The construction system used already takes the ease allowance (EA) into account in the equations for calculating the proportional body dimensions, such as the back width (BW), armhole width (ArW) and chest width (CW). Source [71] recommends an ease allowance of 12.0 cm to 14.0 cm for the CC and 4.0 cm to 6.0 cm for the WC for the jacket construction. If the lowest recommended value is used in the equations for calculating the BW, ArW and CW, Table 1, the ease allowance on the CC is 12.0 cm for the calculated CC of 81.0 cm. An ET of 12.0 cm was used for the construction of the basic pattern design of the jacket. Based on the calculated CC, the proportional construction measures, such as the neck width (NW), the shoulder blade height (SBH) and scye depth (SD) were calculated using the bold numbers in the brackets of the equations in Table 1.

The trousers of the uniform have a classic straight cut. They are supposed to reach the natural waist and are raised at the back. The main body dimensions of the person wearing the trousers are not known, i.e., the BH, WC and HC, so the construction measures cannot be calculated. Therefore, certain measured dimensions were used directly to construct the trousers pattern design, i.e., the outside trouser length (OTL) and inside trouser length (ITL), from which the knee height (KH) and the crotch depth (CD) were calculated according to the equations for calculating the proportional construction measures in Table 2. The outside and inside trouser lengths correspond to the body dimensions of the outside and inside leg length and are shortened depending on the trouser model. The outside and inside leg lengths were measured from the waist to the floor in accordance with the ISO 8559 [72] standard. According to the image sources (Section 1.2), it can be assumed that the trousers extend to the heel of the shoes. It can therefore be assumed that they are shortened by 4.0 cm.

The construction system used [71] does not provide for an ease allowance (EA) for waist circumference (WC). However, it is necessary at the hip line for the comfort when wearing and sitting in the trousers. The front and back trouser widths (FTW, BTW) were measured on the trousers and used as a construction dimensions. The construction system increases the width of the front trousers (1/4 HC) by 0.0 to 0.5 cm and the width of the back trousers (1/4 HC) by 3.0 to 3.5 cm, Table 2. For the straight cut of the trousers, it was assumed that the smallest suggested ease allowance can be used on the HC. Based on this assumption, the hip circumference (HC) was calculated to be 98.0 cm. The other necessary construction dimensions were calculated from the HC: total crotch length (TCW), front crotch width (FCW), back crotch width (BCW) and total back trouser width (TBTW). See Table 2.

It is common knowledge that thousands of years before the introduction of synthetic fibres, the four most important fibres in the textile industry were flax, wool, cotton and silk. Rayon, the first man-made fibre to imitate silk, came into the market in 1910. As already mentioned, there was no possibility of obtaining small samples of fabrics for analysis. Therefore, we can only assume that the jacket is made of 100% woollen fabric (base material), the lining of the jacket is made of 100% cotton fabric, and the sleeves are probably lined with 100% silk fabric. The interlining system for the jacket reinforcement probably consists of a filling (100% cotton fibres), a thinner interlining made of 100% cotton and a thicker interlining made of 100% linen or jute. It is assumed that the trousers are made of 100% wool, while all the textiles inside the trousers are made of 100% cotton. All basic and auxiliary materials incorporated in the uniform are summarised in

Table 3. Basic and auxiliary materials incorporated into the jacket.

Jacket
Basic material Thickness: 0.93 mm Colour (RGB): 0 0 70	Interlining 1 Thickness: 0.39 mm Colour (RGB): 28 28 28	Interlining 2 Thickness: / Colour (RGB): 127 78 23	Reinforcement Thick: 26.0 mm Medium: 14.0 mm Thin: 10.0 mm
Piping cord tape Wide: 3.0 mm Colour (RGB): /	Twisted cord Ø: 3.0 mm Colour (RGB): /	Buttons Front/back Ø: 20.0 mm Sleeves Ø: 13.0 mm	Cockade Ø: 80.0 mm Green (RGB): 0 71 21

and

Table 4. Basic and auxiliary materials incorporated into the trousers.

Trousers
Basic material 1 Thickness: 1.55 mm Colour (RGB): 58 58 58			Basic mat. 2,3 (belt tape, (yoke, fly pockets) Thickness: / Colour (RGB): 255 239 222			Basic mat. 4 (crotch) Thickness: 1.83 mm Colour (RGB): 58 58 58	Piping cord tape Wide: 3.0 mm Colour (RGB): /
Buttons						Eye and hook Wide: 12.75 mm	Buckle Wide: 2.5 × 1.7 mm
Fly Ø: 15.0 mm		Suspenders Ø: 17.0 mm		Welt pocket Ø: 13.6 mm

. The colour analysis of the piping tape with the spectrophotometer could not be carried out as the sample was too small for such measurements. The RGB values are therefore missing from the tables.

Starting from the constructed basic pattern designs of the jacket and trousers, the modelling of all the necessary pattern pieces was carried out on the basis of the analysis, decomposition and precisely measured dimensions of the uniform. The pattern pieces of the jacket and trousers with pockets were made only for the base material in order to create a virtual replica of the uniform and the visual appearance of the uniform. No seam allowances were added either, as they are not required for the simulation of the 3D garment.

OptiTex PDS V11 software was used to construct and model the 2D pattern pieces of the jacket and trousers.

2.3. Creation of the 3D Body Models

Without a realistic 3D body shape and body proportions, it is difficult to design correctly fitting clothing. For this purpose, a 3D body model for the simulation of the jacket and a 3D body model for the simulation of the trousers were created based on the analysis of the measured dimensions of the uniform and the body dimension calculated with the equations used to calculate the proportional body dimensions of the construction system used [55]. Some of these equations are listed in Section 2.2. The OptiTex 3D V11 software and its standard male parametric 3D body model (Adam) were used to create the 3D body models.

2.4. Virtual 3D Simulation and Visualisation of the Uniform

The OptiTex 3D software was used for the virtual 3D simulation and visualisation of the reconstructed uniform of the Maribor National Guard of 1848/49. The virtual seams, the position and layers of the pattern pieces in relation to the 3D body model and the selected physical and mechanical properties of the textiles were defined by the modelled pattern pieces of the jacket and trousers. It is known that the 3D shape of the garment and its draping on the body depends not only on the pattern design of the garment, but also on the physical and mechanical properties of the textiles [73,74,75], which in turn depend on the structural parameters of the textiles, such as the weave, linear density of warp and weft yarns, warp and weft density of the fabric, etc. [76].

In order to make the virtual reconstruction of the uniform as realistic as possible, we could only carry out non-destructive methods of analysing the textiles incorporated into the uniform, such as determining the thickness of the textiles according to ISO 5084:1996 [77], the determination of colours with a portable spectrophotometer and the conversion from L*a*b* to RGB [78]. It would be necessary to intervene destructively in the original uniform to determine the weave of the textiles [79], their surface mass [80] and the mechanical properties of the textiles at low load with a FAST or KES measuring device [81,82] or measuring devices from CAD 3D systems such as OptiTex, CLO 3D and Browzwear [83,84,85]. It would also be necessary to determine the raw material composition of the materials.

Therefore, for the virtual reconstruction of the uniform under consideration, textiles from the OptiTex 3D database were used, those with the properties that came closest to the non-destructively analysed properties of the textiles incorporated into the uniform. For the virtual reconstruction of the uniform, however, all auxiliary materials can be used for its realistic appearance.

3. Results and Discussion

3.1. Reconstruction of Uniform Pattern Design

The uniform pattern design consists of the pattern pieces for the jacket and the trousers. The jacket pattern pieces for the textile base material are shown in Figure 7, and the trouser pattern pieces, in Figure 8. The basic pattern designs were carried out for the construction measures given in Table 1 and Table 2. The pattern pieces were modelled on the basis of the analysis and decomposition of the jacket and trousers and their exact measurements. The developed pattern designs for the uniform can be used for the virtual 3D prototyping of the uniform as well as for the production of a realistic replica of the uniform together with the constructed pattern pieces of linings and interlinings for its overall appearance.

3.2. Three-Dimensional Body Models

The 3D body model for the virtual 3D prototyping of the jacket was created based on the calculated body height (BH) and chest circumference (CC). The BH of the person wearing the jacket was calculated based on the back length (BL) using Equation (1), taking into account the lowest value in the brackets of the equation. The calculated BH was 176.0 cm. When the body height was adjusted to the parametric 3D body model, length measurements such as the back length, outside leg length, inside leg length and arm length were automatically changed in relation to the body height. The standard 3D body model was parameterised according to the body proportions, and the proportional dimensions were changed automatically. If the calculated body height is used to calculate the sleeve length (SL) using Equation (2), considering the lowest value in the brackets of the equation, the measured and calculated construction dimensions would match, which means that the calculated body height matches the body proportions.

$$BL={\displaystyle \frac{1}{4}}BH+\left(1.0 \mathrm{to} 2.0 \mathrm{cm}\right)=45.0 \mathrm{cm}$$

(1)

$$SlL={\displaystyle \frac{3}{8}}BH-\left(2.0 \mathrm{to} 3.0 \mathrm{cm}\right)=64.0 \mathrm{cm}$$

(2)

The construction dimension of the CC is known and is 46.5 cm (i.e., ½ CC). The CC of the person wearing the jacket was calculated using the equations for calculating proportional body dimensions: back width (BW), chest width (CW) and armhole width (AW). See Table 1. The construction system used states that the ease allowance for the jacket comfort at the CC is between 12.0 cm and 14.0 cm. Therefore, the chest circumferences for both ease allowances (EAs) were calculated according to Equations (3) and (4). In this way, the chest circumference of 81.0 cm was calculated for the ease allowance of 12.0 cm and the CC of 79.0 cm for the EA of 14.0 cm:

$${\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}CC=\left({\displaystyle \frac{2}{10}}CC+0.5 \mathrm{cm}\right)+\left({\displaystyle \frac{2}{10}}CC+1.0 \mathrm{cm}\right)+\left({\displaystyle \frac{1}{8}}CC+2.5 \mathrm{cm}\right)=46.5 \mathrm{cm}$$

(3)

$${\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}CC=\left({\displaystyle \frac{2}{10}}CC+0.5 \mathrm{cm}\right)+\left({\displaystyle \frac{2}{10}}CC+1.5 \mathrm{cm}\right)+\left({\displaystyle \frac{1}{8}}CC+3.0 \mathrm{cm}\right)=46.5 \mathrm{cm}$$

(4)

The virtual 3D body models were created from the standard parametric 3D body model (SBM), for which its basic body dimensions are listed in

Table 5. Dimensions of the standard parametric 3D body model and the 3D body models for the jacket simulation.

Measure Name	Label	Virtual 3D Body Models Dimensions (cm)
		SBM		BMJ1_EA12		BMJ2_EA14
Body height	BH	179.0		176.0		176.0
Chest circumference	CC	104.9		81.0		79.0
Under chest circ.	UCC	96.3		76.0		74.0
Cross shoulders	CS	44.5		40.6		40.6
Waist circumference	WC	82.7		72.0		72.0
Hips circumference	HC	98.5		90.0		90.0
Back length (meas.)	BL	46.0		45.0		45.0
Outside leg length	OLL	109.5		107.5		107.5
Inside leg length	IlL	82.8		81.4		81.4
Arm length	AL	60.7		59.4		59.4

. A 3D body model for the simulation of the jacket with an EA of 12.0 cm (BMJ1_EA12) and a 3D body model for the simulation of the jacket with an EA of 14.0 cm (BMJ1_EA14) were created, Table 5. In order to adjust the chest circumferences, the under-chest circumferences and the shoulder cross measurement had to be reduced. In order to adapt the 3D body model as realistically as possible to the natural proportions of the body, the hip circumference was corrected to 90.0 cm and the waist circumference to 72.0 cm. The ease allowance for jacket comfort at the waist circumference was therefore 6.0 cm.

It can be seen that the jacket was worn by a rather petite person. The difference between the 3D body models for the jacket simulation is small. Nevertheless, the body looks more harmonious with a larger chest circumference. It can therefore be assumed that the body dimensions of BMJ1_EA12 correspond to the body dimensions of the person wearing the jacket.

The 3D body model for the virtual 3D prototyping of the trousers was developed on the basis of the calculated body height (BH). It is known from the body proportions that the outside length of the leg, i.e., outside trouser length (OTL), measured according to ISO 8559 [72] from the natural line of the waist over the hip to the floor, is 5/8 BH − 4.5 cm [71]. Taking into account that the length of the trousers is shortened by 4.0 cm, the body height of the person wearing the trousers can be calculated from the outside trousers’ length according to Equation (5). It can be assumed that the trousers of the uniform were worn by a person with a body height of 160.8 cm and an outside leg length of 100.0 cm. From this, the inside trouser length (ITL) can be calculated, which is 77.4 cm (Equation (6)), and the crotch depth is 22.6 cm. The crotch depth (CD) in Table 2 is 30.0 cm. This means that the trousers have a CD deepen for a 7.4 cm. Therefore, the calculated knee height in Table 2 is incorrect. The correct construction measure is 46.5 cm (the equation in Table 2).

$$OTL={\displaystyle \frac{5}{8}}BH-4.5 \mathrm{cm}+\left(4.0 \mathrm{cm}\right)=100.0 \mathrm{cm}$$

(5)

$$ITL={\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}BH-7.0 \mathrm{cm}+\left(4.0 \mathrm{cm}\right)$$

(6)

The virtual 3D body model was created from the standard parametric 3D body model (SBM), for which its basic body dimensions are listed in

Table 6. Dimensions of the standard parametric 3D body model and the 3D body models for the trouser simulation.

Measure Name	Label	Virtual 3D Body Models Dimensions (cm)
		SBM		BMT1_BD1		BMT2_BD2
Body height	BH	179.0		160.8		160.8
Chest circumference	CC	104.9		100.2		101.5
Under chest circ.	UCC	96.3		92.0		92.8
Waist circumference	WC	82.7		98.0		98.0
Hips circumference	HC	98.5		98.0		98.0
Outside leg length	OLL	109.5		100.0		100.0
Inside leg length	IlL	82.8		77.4		77.4
Knee height	KH	47.4		46.4		46.4
Belly depth	BD	20.7		26.5		28.5

. Two 3D body models were created for the simulation of the trousers (BMT1_BD1, BMT2_BD2), which differ in the belly depth (BD). When the BH was adjusted from 179.0 cm to 160.8 cm, there were changes in the proportional length dimensions (OLL, IlL, KH) for BMT1_BD1. Therefore, the OLL, IlL and KH were adjusted to the calculated body measures. In addition, the CC and UCC were reduced when the WC was increased from 82.7 cm to 98.0 cm and the HC from 98.5 cm to 98.0 cm (BMT1_BD1). At the same time, the belly depth increased from 20.7 cm to 26.5 cm. When the belly depth was changed to 28.5 cm, while the WC and HC remained at 98.0 cm, the CC and UCC increased (BMT2_BD2). In BMT2_BD2, with a belly depth of 28.5 cm, a more harmonious body image can be observed.

The 3D body models of the wearer of the jacket and the wearer of the trousers were defined on the basis of measurements of the dimensions of the uniform, using equations to calculate the proportional construction dimensions and by analysing the main body dimensions using the help of the standard 3D body model of the software used. It can therefore be assumed that the wearer of the jacket had a body height of 176.0 cm, a chest circumference of 81.0 cm, a waist circumference of 72.0 cm and a hip circumference of 90.0 cm. The wearer of the trousers had a body height of 160.8 cm, a chest circumference of 101.5 cm, a waist circumference of 98.0 cm and a hip circumference of 98.0 cm.

The virtual 3D prototypes of the uniform can be seen in Figure 9. Using a 3D mesh model of the jacket pattern design, a gap can be seen between the jacket and the 3D body model, corresponding to a 12.00 cm ease allowance on the CC, which belongs to the reinforcement of the jacket and the garments worn under the jacket, Figure 9a. The use of a tension map shows that a greater fabric tension (red) can be seen in the area of the sleeve cap and the cross shoulders. This is due to the sleeve seam and the fitting of the jacket to the body. It should be noted that there are no reinforcements under the jacket at the shoulders and the cross-shoulder, which would probably distribute some of the tension in the fabric better. For the same reason (without shoulder pads), the waist seam of the jacket falls too low, causing tension in the fabric, especially at the front. To remove some of this tension (tension around the seams is always present), future research will focus on modelling the reinforcements of the jacket on a 3D body model to achieve a better fit of the jacket on the body. Such a 3D body model can also be 3D-printed for the needs of the exhibition in a real environment, so that it would not be necessary to adapt the tailor’s dummy to the measurements of the uniform.

In using a 3D mesh model of the trouser pattern design, a gap can be seen between the trousers and the 3D body model, Figure 9a. It can be seen from the tension map that there are no major tensions in the trouser fabric (red) or in the trouser pattern design. On this basis, we can confirm that the trousers fit the 3D body model well. This means that the reconstructed trouser pattern design matches the 3D body model, and its body dimensions defined in this study. We can also notice the deepened crotch of the trousers, which provides comfort when wearing and sitting in the trousers. Furthermore, the length of the trousers extends to the heel of the shoe, which corresponds to the expected length of the trousers during their decomposition and reconstruction of the pattern design and defined 3D body model basic dimensions.

It is obvious that the jacket was worn by a rather petite person, Figure 9. Historical records show that there was a student guard in Maribor [69]. Therefore, we can assume that the 3D body model and the body measurements belong to a student, while the trousers belong to a corpulent adult man of the guard. The latter emphasises that it is possible to calculate and define the main body measurements of individuals who wore the historical uniform by applying the presented procedures for reconstructing the uniform pattern design, i.e., analysing, measuring, decomposing and reconstructing the uniform pattern design using equations for calculating the proportional construction measurements and a standard 3D body model of the software used.

3.3. Virtual Reconstruction of the Maribor National Guard Uniform of 1848/49

The virtual reconstruction of the jacket of the uniform of the Maribor National Guard from 1848/49 is shown in Figure 10.

A 100% woollen fabric from the software’s fabric library was used to simulate the jacket. The default simulation properties of the software, the self-intersection tool and a resolution of the 3D mesh of the pattern pieces of 1.3 cm were used to simulate the jacket. The physical and mechanical properties of the fabric from the software library were a bending rigidity of 1.0 μNm, extensibility of 7.55%, shear rigidity of 10.0 N/m and weight of 170 gm⁻², while the known fabric thickness of 0.093 cm was used to simulate the jacket. The fabric used had a low bending rigidity and shear rigidity, which is also reflected in the higher extensibility of the fabric and the soft drape of the lower part of the jacket. In order to achieve the visual effect of the small shoulder pads sewn into the sleeve cap, it was necessary to increase the thickness of the fabric to 10.0 mm and the weight to 200.0 gm⁻². To better represent the pattern pieces and the construction of the jacket, the seams are a lighter blue colour than the colour of the real jacket.

It can be seen that the virtually reconstructed jacket has all the visual details, Figure 10, that the authentic jacket also has, Figure 4, such as colour, buttons, piping cord tape, pads, cockade, cuff with vent and overlapping flap in the centre back of the jacket with a decorative flap of the inside pockets and two buttons with the same dimensions as the front button fastening.

It can be concluded that the virtual reconstruction of the Maribor National Guard jacket was successful, as it corresponds to the original in terms of pattern design, shape and details. From the historical records of the Vienna uniform regulations and the details of the uniform collected in source [69], we can suppose that the jacket belonged to a student of the student company in Maribor as it contains a white and green cockade. The latter is also confirmed by the determined body measurements of the wearer of the jacket, as its petite body shape could belong to a student whose body was still developing.

The virtual reconstruction of the trousers of the Maribor National Guard uniform from 1848/49 is shown in Figure 11. The same woollen fabric from the software’s fabric library was used to simulate the trousers, with the same physical and mechanical properties as for the jacket. Only the known fabric thickness was changed to 0.155 cm, and the thickness of the fabric reinforcing the crotch was changed to 0.183 cm to simulate the trousers. The default simulation properties of the software, the self-intersection tool and a resolution of the 3D mesh of the pattern pieces of 1.5 cm were used to simulate the trousers. To better represent the pattern pieces and the construction of the trousers, the seams were made a lighter grey colour than the colour of the real trousers.

The virtually reconstructed trousers have all the visual details of the authentic trousers, Figure 4 and Figure 11, i.e., colour, buttons for the shoulder straps, piped cord tape in the side seams below the side pockets with decorative stitching, a welt pocket with a button and a buckle for small belts on the back to adjust the circumference of the trousers at the waist.

The colours of the jacket and trousers match the measured RGB values, but their original textures could not be accurately identified as it was not possible to analyse the construction and physical–mechanical properties of the textiles in detail. In using advanced digital technology, it would be possible with these data to digitise the original fabrics and assign them their physical and mechanical properties. In order to perform an accurate visualisation and simulation of the drape of textiles of historical clothing, it is necessary to develop an accurate “3D body model–textile–clothing” system. Therefore, future research will aim to develop a method to determine the construction parameters and the physical and mechanical properties of textiles needed for the visualisation and simulation of virtual replicas, based on non-destructive analysis methods.

The analyses and digital technologies presented in this study led to accurate interpretations of historical clothing. The virtual replicas presented accurately reproduce the clothing image of the time and thus contribute to the sustainable preservation of the originals of clothing heritage, its research and the accessibility of clothing heritage to the public.

The sizes of the created virtual replicas of historical garments were 25.632 kB for the jacket and 26.868 kB for the trousers. Some sources [86,87] point out that the CO₂ emissions of data stored on farm servers are estimated at 15 g CO₂ per year for 1 GB in “hot data storage”, which means that the data can be retrieved at any time. However, similar to museum repositories, not all historical garments need to be available at all times but are displayed on demand or as part of a collection. Therefore, virtual replica data could be stored in “cold data storage”, where the data are stored in switched-off servers that consume far less energy and do not require cooling. Such data are available on demand. In the production of replicas of historical garments, sewing and cutting do not account for a significant proportion of a rough estimate of the environmental impact, as the processes directly related to the creation of the replica are more or less carried out by hand. However, the production of the materials required for the replica accounts for a significant proportion of the environmental impact. According to sources [88,89], the production of 1 kg of fabric releases an average of 20–23 kg of CO₂-equivalent greenhouse gas emissions. These impacts do not take into account the transport of the finished fabric and other market activities, so the value of emissions is likely to be somewhat higher. However, considering that the jacket and trousers are made from approximately 0.37 kg and 0.27 kg of fabric, the values of emissions from the real historical replica far exceed the values of the stored data. Furthermore, by creating a virtual “cold data repository”, the replicas can be stored with minimal energy consumption, unlike the museum repositories where constant cooling, air conditioning, humidification, adequate lighting, gasification, etc. are required to slow down the degradation of the textiles as much as possible.

4. Conclusions

In this research, the virtual replicas of the original uniform, jacket and trousers, of the Maribor National Guard of 1848/49 were developed on the basis of a defined 3D body model–clothing system. To this end, only non-destructive analysis methods were carried out on the original clothing. The use of digital technologies made it possible to analyse in detail the body dimensions of the wearers of the jacket and trousers and to reconstruct the historical clothing, and their virtual replicas accurately reflect the structure of the clothing pattern designs and the visual and aesthetic characteristics of the uniform of the Maribor National Guard.

The reconstruction of the uniform pattern design based on the analysis and decomposition of the jacket and trousers determined their exact measurements and construction dimensions. At the same time, the basic and auxiliary materials sewn into the uniform were analysed for the purpose of simulation and visualisation.

The 3D body models of the wearer of the jacket and the wearer of the trousers for the virtual reconstruction of the uniform were defined on the basis of measurements of the dimensions of the uniform and using equations to calculate the proportional construction dimensions and by analysing the main body dimensions using the help of the standard 3D body model of the software used.

The “3D body model–clothing” system developed in this way enabled the development of accurate virtual replicas of the historical clothing in question. In order to develop an accurate “3D body model–textile–clothing” system, future research will aim to develop a method for determining the construction parameters and the physical and mechanical properties of textiles for the advanced visualisation and simulation of virtual replicas based on non-destructive analysing methods.

Based on the research presented in this article, it can be concluded that the use of the presented analyses and digital technologies enables accurate interpretations of historical clothing that can be used as exhibits in virtual and real environments. The virtual replicas presented accurately reflect the image of the clothing and thus contribute to the sustainable preservation of clothing heritage, its research and the accessibility of clothing heritage to the public. Virtual replicas offer a more sustainable alternative to traditional reproduction methods by eliminating the need for physical materials such as fabrics and dyes, thus reducing water consumption and the emission of hazardous chemicals. The creation and storage of virtual replicas does involve a certain amount of energy consumption. In data storage centres in particular, this impact can be minimised through optimised data storage practises, such as the use of cold data storage for files that are accessed less frequently. This approach not only reduces energy consumption but also contrasts with the environmental impact associated with creating and maintaining physical replicas, which require constant material resources and energy-intensive maintenance. Overall, virtual replicas represent a forward-thinking solution that is in line with sustainable practises and offers a long-term, environmentally friendly approach to the preservation and research of historical garments.