Development of a virtual reality application for the Old Harran School

Abstract

The objective of this project that is described in this paper was to introduce the little-known Harran School of the medieval Islamic period located in Southeast Türkiye to a broader audience using virtual reality technologies. 3D models of the medieval Inner Castle in the Harran archaeological site and one of its saloons were created using photogrammetric methods. In this main saloon, 3D models of artifacts found during excavation works on this site that were used in medieval and earlies times were placed in a museum-like style. Additional objects, illumination and paintings of great Islamic scholars were appended to create a more realistic setting in the saloon. All these 3D models were transferred to the game engine Unity to generate a virtual environment, in which the visitor can immerse. Currently, this virtual museum can be experienced by PC-based head-mounted devices. While different implementations of virtual museums are already available in Türkiye with this project, a museum deploying virtual reality technology has been realized for the first time.