Lanit-Tercom and Augmented.City leverage AR to restore Madonnelle in old Bari
Lanit-Tercom (part of the LANIT group of companies) and Italian startup Augmented.City are attracting investment aimed at restoring approximately 240 Italian churches and invaluable altars complete with holy icons. This will be the first time augmented reality is used to restore cultural heritage locations. The investment process will be competitive. In order to bring attention to the cultural treasures, among which is the Fresco of Saint Nicholas of Bari, Augmented.City developers built an AR overlay with unique information about the pieces being voted on. Madonnelle are small images of the Madonna decorating intersections and corner buildings. Throughout Bari’s history, they protected homes, alleys, streets, and pedestrian crossings in the city’s old center. Building facades feature pictures of beloved and respected saints, from San Nicola, the city’s protector, to San Sabino, Rocco, Antonio da Padova, Cosma and Damiano, Vito, and Domenico. “We’d like to use Bari to show how AR can be used to protect historical sites. By adding a virtual overlay to physical objects, we highlight the importance of technical progress on par with the care we take of past achievements, historical artifacts, and culture,” said Lanit-Tercom Italy Marketing & Sales Director Katherina Ufnarovskaya. Madonnelle are fragile artifacts the local population has kept safe and beautiful, though the cultural heritage of Bari will no longer be left to Italians alone. Anyone around the world can vote on how history is preserved. Lanit-Tercom and Augmented.City plan to gradually expand how AR is applied, with several new and innovative AR solutions in the works for tourists and everyone else who appreciates a little culture.