One moment, the ethereal white or green curtains of light with a streak of violet take on forms that evoke the ancient mythology of the north - a palace of lights, a Sami fire in the wilderness, the prow of a Viking ship.

BBC: The perfect trip: Norway

Now, a team of researches from the University of Oxford and the University of Southampton in the UK has developed what they are calling the "Reflectance Transformation Imaging system, " which uses 76 lights to illuminate different sections of the ancient artifacts, one at a time, while an image is taken.

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