Using Immersive Virtual Reality in Ancient Egypt’s Giza Plateau

Abstract

The aim of this research study is to adopt an innovative IT means for presenting the ancient Egyptian heritage to both the academics and tourists, remotely. Academic staff and students, tourists, tour agents/guides, and historians can all benefit from the online access to major Egyptian monuments using an advanced Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR) package, such as Second Life (SL). IVR is a form of technology that creates computer-generated worlds or immersive environments which people can explore and interact with. SL is a virtual game environment that has been used successfully in education and tourism. We had reported on the preliminary results of this research project in [1] where we compared what we did using SL with other tourism packages and games. With the success of the first stage of the research in the Giza plateau, we expect it to lead the way for further integration between IT and cultural heritage. It may very well be replicated for other historical locations in Egypt.