Ready to travel back to ancient Greece without leaving your classroom?
A team of scholars led by the University of Bristol has created a Virtual Reality (VR) app that will do just that.
This thrilling experience will make you feel like you’re standing before Zeus himself at the Oracle of Dodona!
The Oracle of Dodona was a sacred site in Greece, second only to the well-known Oracle of Delphi. People from all walks of life – from community leaders to ordinary folk and even slaves – would visit the oracle.
They asked the gods for answers about the past, present, and future, jotting down their questions on lead tablets.
But why Dodona? The app focuses on this oracle because we have loads of these tablets still around today.
These relics give us an insight into what concerned people back then, how they dealt with uncertainty, and how they connected with their gods.
The VR app takes you back to 465 BCE. You get to choose from three different paths, meet other ‘pilgrims,’ listen to their tales, and finally, you get to ask Zeus your own questions through the priestesses.
So, how was this app developed? The team took inputs from potential users, including students and teachers, and also sought feedback from visitors at the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery. Their aim was to make the app as realistic as possible.
Professor Kirsten Cater from the Computer Science Department at Bristol mentioned the importance of including users in the design process. This helped in making the VR experience more immersive, especially for educational and museum settings.
Dr. Michael Proulx from the University of Bath’s Department of Psychology, explains how the project advances the use of modern technology in studying ancient history. It’s like time traveling, he says, allowing us to feel present in that ancient place and moment.
This immersive approach to studying history can aid future VR development by enhancing the role of multisensory processing and integration.
The best part? You can access this time travel journey for free! Android users can download it from Google Play Store and use it with any cardboard VR headset.
For those using Meta’s range of VR headsets (like Quest / Quest 2), the app can be downloaded directly from the Meta Store.
Get ready to be transported back to ancient Greece and experience history like never before!
