Ullastret 3D: Communicating an Archaeological Site to the Wider Public Through Storytelling, Immersion, and Virtual Reality

Visiting an archaeological site can mean a trip back in time for visitors who understand what they are seeing. But on many occasions, a large part of the public do not grasp the real meaning of the remains around them. Ullastret 3D has helped viewers achieve a high level of understanding of the archaeological site by using storytelling as the communication strategy and virtual environments as the display. In a two-year project, the exhaustive archaeological information available for the ancient town of Ullastret (250 BC) was transformed into a complete 3D model of the city. Inspired by the London Charter ( https://londoncharter.org/introduction.html ), a team of archaeologists, designers, and programmers ensured historical rigor throughout the process. The 3D model of the Iberian town was the basis for an immersive experience with a storytelling script that placed visitors in the dream of a member of the town’s elite who returns to their house and remembers fragments of their life. Through this approach, visitors are shown key elements of Iberian culture such as the inhabitants’ totemic animals, the social prevalence of warriors, and the collapse brought about by the Roman Empire. The story can be experienced through two different installations, an individual VR experience and a group immersive room; both were received enthusiastically by the public.