Zurich 3173 BC: Historic 3D Reconstruction in virtual reality
Matthias Bühler, vrbn.ioStadt Zürich, 2017
Shortly after the first digging efforts were made during the ‘Parkhaus Opéra’ project, where a large parking garage was planned in the heart of Zurich, remains of ancient settlements were found. An emergency excavation was initiated to chart and recover the precious treasures with precision.
To revive the settlement, the Office for Urbanism of the City of Zurich, Switzerland asked vrbn to create a virtual 3d historic reconstruction of the ancient lake side settlements.
The goal described was an experience that ‘lets the viewer dive into the ancient world’, rather than just having only ‘flat’ visualisations. Virtual Reality is one of the most immersive methods for such endeavours and was proposed as the way to go.
The resulting VR demo was exhibited for a three week period in summer 2017, on-site at the Opera House Square.