Our paper will deal with the creation process of a mixed reality -based presentation and a 3D model of the Holy Ghost Church in Turku in Finland as a part of the Futuristic History research project. The focus of this case study was to research how experts from fields of history, archaeology, economy, engineering and art should work together to produce attractive user oriented content for museums.
Mixed reality covers both virtual and augmented reality solutions. Augmented reality stands for technologies combining interactive virtual elements and information with reality in real time. The content can be presented using mobile or wearable equipment, like a smartphone, tablet or eyewear.
Building of the Holy Ghost church was begun in 1588 but was never entirely completed. The church, however, was probably in use a couple of years until it was severely damaged in a fire in 1593. Afterwards the church ruins were used as a cemetery. The last visible remains of the church were cleared in 1650s to make way for the realization of the new street plan for the town. The ruins were revealed in archaeological excavations in 1960s and 1980s.
The mixed reality -experience of the Holy Ghost church includes both inside and outside presentation of the church. The experience consists of an accurate 3D model enriched with natural imagery, 3D scanned elements, live action video and realistic soundscape. Also further information is presented in textual form and alternative historical Interpretations are presented visually.
The main challenge was that no pictorial representations of the church have remained. With the help of the material from the excavations, archival research and comparisons with similar buildings in Finland and Sweden the presentation is made as historically reliable and accurate as possible. The viewer is however reminded that the model is only an interpretation of the past, not the past in itself.
