Culture and technology come together to shape the future of Italy’s artistic heritage through an innovative project at the Santa Croce Monumental Complex in Florence. This historic site, admired by hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, enriches the visitor experience with new Extended Reality (XR) solutions, offering an innovative way to immerse oneself in cultural heritage.
Developed through a partnership between TIM Enterprise and Opera di Santa Croce, with support from Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and Live Reply, the project introduces new interactive and dynamic visit experiences. The majestic Franciscan Basilica, which houses the tombs of historical figures such as Michelangelo, Galileo, and Machiavelli, now offers a more engaging visit through interactive digital experiences.
Visitors can use 5G mmWave smartphones powered by Qualcomm Technologies, equipped with an augmented reality application developed by Live Reply. This cutting-edge technology allows visitors to explore the artworks and historical figures of Santa Croce through immersive images and videos, enhancing engagement and improving the cultural offering.
This initiative represents the first phase of a larger project, which will leverage Extended Reality to deepen the understanding of Santa Croce’s rich heritage. In the coming months, these technologies will become an integral part of visitor support tools, making the monumental complex more accessible and appealing to a broader and more diverse audience.
To bring this project to life, the experts of Opera di Santa Croce and the highly specialized teams of technical partners worked in total synergy, enhancing the dual spiritual and secular identity of the monumental complex through the development of two thematic augmented reality tours: one dedicated to Franciscan heritage and the other to the Great Figures of Santa Croce.
Together, they identified the most significant thematic paths and key elements to be explored in augmented reality. Live Reply then produced multimedia content (immersive images and videos), merging historical accuracy with advanced technology to create a unique digital experience that respects and enhances the historical and artistic context of Santa Croce.
To learn more about the project, read the full press release here.
Opera di Santa Croce
Owned by the Fondo Edifici di Culto del Ministero dell'Interno and the Municipality of Florence, the monumental complex of Santa Croce is managed by the Opera di Santa Croce, which has been responsible for the protection and enhancement of this place since the 14th century, in agreement with the owners and the Community of Friars Minor Conventual. The immense artistic heritage and the civil value of the monuments and memorials kept in Santa Croce require an important conservation activity that the Opera, one of the oldest fabrications in Italy and today a non-profit lay organisation, carries out without public contributions, thanks to funds collected through visits and private donations. All the measures are carried out under the supervision of the competent Superintendencies, following a regular schedule, and cover both the basilica and the adjacent museum areas and cloisters.
TIM Enterprise
TIM Enterprise is TIM's business unit offering companies and public administrations innovative, sustainable and secure all-round digital solutions. It transforms Connectivity, Cloud, Cybersecurity and IoT technology solutions into effective and reliable services and solutions. Through Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics, it is able to simplify the complexity of operational processes and open up new growth opportunities for its customers, providing the necessary space for data management and more time to focus on business objectives. Its 16 proprietary Data Centres, powered 100% by energy from renewable sources, are distributed throughout Italy and guarantee the highest international security standards.
Live Reply
Live Reply is the Reply Group company specialising in digital solutions and services enabled by telecommunication and media technologies. Live Reply provides end-to-end solutions for leading telecommunications and media companies, as well as Tier 1 operators in the financial services, automotive and consumer goods sectors. Live Reply's core competences range from digital services implementation, mobile and front-end development, to IoT enabled solutions, from multimedia asset management to mobile commerce and engagement.