From Canada to Ancient Greece: Traveling with Technology

The Museum of Vancouver in Canada worked with Simon Fraser University’s Stavros Niarchos Foundation Centre for Hellenic Studies to create an exhibit called Beyond Worlds: Greek Civilization XR Experience. This exhibit used both augmented and virtual reality technologies that enable visitors to virtually immerse themselves in Greek mythological and historical sites.

 

The exhibit was in its nascent stages and was only for elementary students until January 2020 while the researchers calibrated the technology being used. Even in its pilot run, though, the program offered visitors a unique opportunity to put on a pair of 3D goggles and be transported to a digital reconstruction of the Tholos of Delphi. Within this virtual site, museum-goers could explore the landmark and even leave an offering for the Delphic Oracle.

 

The museum also offers other virtual experiences for their visitors. For example, using a common tablet attached to a round shield, a still image of battleships could be projected onto the wall. Then, via the tablet’s screen, visitors were given access to a Greek warship’s deck after the Battle of Salamis, which took place in the 5th century BCE. From the ship’s virtual deck, viewers could see orange clouds emanating from the fires that destroyed enemy ships.

 

At a less dramatic installation, a tablet could also be used to virtually open a door painted on one of the museum’s walls. The door led to an ancient Greek villa’s yard, where actors in costumes of clothes from ancient times sat in conversation under the sun.

 

Visitors were also invited to wear 3D goggles and enter the mythological Greek underworld. In this world, people were transported throughout the underworld to perform simple tasks.

 

Although the exhibit is still considered to be a pilot project, it points to a new type of digital tourism and immersive learning. Museum-goers will not only be able to cross geographical boundaries in a matter of seconds, but they’ll also have the chance to go back in time and participate in mythological and historical events that they could only learn about, or watch from afar in movies and documentaries.

 

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter