Abstract
Some archaeological sites are not easily accessible by visitors due to mobility or geographical restrictions. Digital technology can make such sites virtually accessible and provide educational information at the same time. Toward this goal, we created a digital reconstruction of the archaeological site of Choirokoitia. Given that a 3D digital reconstruction can be used along with different technologies, we designed and developed an interactive application, where users can navigate and get information about the site, for two different systems: Virtual Reality (VR) systems and desktop computers. A feasibility study was conducted where we compared aspects of the two systems so as to allow the suggestion of the proper technology to utilize according to a user's aims. The results showed higher levels of presence and more positive experience by the participants who used the VR system compared to those who used the desktop version. On the other hand, greater learning gains were demonstrated in participants who used the desktop version compared to those who used the VR version. No differences were shown between the two groups regarding the participants' change of attitudes toward the archaeology of Cyprus.
Highlights
People around the world visit archaeological and historical sites mainly for pleasure or to learn about the place as such and its history, or even the combination of both, in which case it is called educational tourism
The aims of this study were (i) to enable virtual access to the archaeological site of Choirokoitia and (ii) to examine the feasibility of the use of the immersive interactive Virtual Reality (VR) application developed in comparison to an application that can be developed by a person with basic computer skills
We virtually reconstructed the archaeological site of Choirokoitia and developed and compared two applications, an immersive VR Application and a Desktop Application
Summary
People around the world visit archaeological and historical sites mainly for pleasure or to learn about the place as such and its history, or even the combination of both, in which case it is called educational tourism. Important archaeological sites around the world are not always accessed by everyone due to the remote location of the site itself or mobility difficulties of possible visitors. With the current advances in technology, such places can be accessed remotely through interactive multimedia applications. With ubiquitous computing evolving and devices, such as VR headsets allowing more immersive experiences compared to traditional desktop computing, virtual heritage is gaining increasing interest. According to Roussou (2002), a well-designed virtual heritage application aiming to benefit public education should visualize and provide “access” to sites and places that no longer exist, are geographically remote, or are unreachable.
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