This blog has also featured 3D models for about 2.5 years. They can now also be viewed via IIIF (V4) in manifests.
IIIF Presentation V4?
IIIF (Presentation) V4 has been a long time in the making and has been undergoing the release candidate review process since April 2026. A key new feature is support for 3D data. The new container for this is Scene, alongside which (or rather, within which) Model is used. In addition to models, lights and cameras can also be placed within a scene. Models can be used in the glTF (or GLB as a binary format). Further information and examples can be found at the IIIF 3D Technical Specification Group, including sample manifests.
The manifests
The 3D models on this blog (for 3D models in the browser and UV photogrammetry) are now also available as IIIF manifests.
All pages with 3D content, their manifests and the respective link to the Kasane viewer:
| Page | Manifest | Viewer |
|---|---|---|
| 3D models in the browser | manifest.json | Kasane |
| UV photogrammetry | manifest.json | Kasane |
Viewer
A manifest is only half the battle; you also need a viewer that can display the Scene class. Kasane (formerly “IIIF 3D Viewer”, University of Tokyo) is an open-source viewer (MIT) that displays 3D models, images, audio and video from IIIF manifests and can enhance them with annotations. The project has not yet been published on npm, but manifests can already be accessed via deep links:
https://kasane.ldas.jp/viewer?iiif-content=<URL of the manifest>