Page 161 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 13(2) (2025)

Conclusion becomes a call for smart presence: from island to
Osor shares common characteristics with many cloud, from excavation to education, from isola-
heritage sites: historical depth combined with tion to connection. In this model, Osor’s past is
limited contemporary reach. Archaeological re- not just preserved but activated as a resource for
search has revealed its importance as a mari- contemporary understanding, learning and use
time and cultural point in the northern Adri- of the new knowledge for future resilience.
atic, yet this knowledge remains limited to the Acknowledgments
wider public. The proposed case of Osor sows a
transformation in archaeological practice: from The research paper was elaborated within the rese-
site-centred preservation toward networked her- arch projects no. N6-0292: Osor beyond the myth,
itage infrastructures. Traditional heritage man- N6-0297: From Sea to Sea, J7-60128: AID HCH
agement has focused on protecting physical re- – Breakthrough in humanities and cultural heri-
mains and regulating visitor access. While these tage with artificial intelligence, funded by the Slo- 161
venian Research and Innovation Agency (ARIS)
objectives remain neccessary, they must be com- and the Research Programme Core Funding No.
plemented by strategies that enable the circula- P6-0460: Heritage as an Object and Reflection of
tion of knowledge and digital twins offer a pos- Social Processes.
sibility to develop this kind of system (Liu and
Wang 2024, 1019). They include archaeological References
data within platforms that are accessible, up- Banfi, F., E. Dellu, C. Stanga, et al. 2023.
dateable, and pedagogically usable. In doing so, ‘Representing Intangible Cultural Heritage
they transform archaeology from localised scien- of Humanity: From the Deep Abyss of
tific research into a distributed educational re- the Past to Digital Twin and XR of the
source. However, digital access should not re- Neanderthal Man and Lamalunga Cave
place physical experience but enrich it, ensuring (Altamura, Apulia).’ International Archives
that virtual experiences remain connected with of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and
material remains. Spatial Information Sciences 48-M-2:171–8.
The Osor case suggests that small heritage Bertoldi, S. 2021. ‘C.A.P.I. Project in the Making:
towns can act as testbeds for innovative models 3D Applications at Poggio Imperiale Make Osor Great Again: Accessible Archaeology Between Island and Cloud
because their scale enables manageable experi- between Materiality and Virtual Reality
mentation. Rather than competing with large (Poggibonsi, Italy).’ Open Archaeology 7 (1):
urban heritage centres, they can specialise in in- 1444–60.
tegrative, research-based digital interpretation. Bruno, F., A. Lagudi, G. Ritacco, et al. 2017.
We have tried to offer the solution in redefining ‘Development and Integration of Digital
access through digital mediation. By integrat- Technologies Addressed to Raise Awareness
ing tourism strategies and digital heritage tools, and Access to European Underwater
Cultural Heritage: An Overview of the
Osor can become a site of learning and interpre- H2020 i-MARECULTURE Project.’ In
tation. The concept of a digital twin of Osor rep- OCEANS 2017 – Aberdeen. IEEE.
resents the basis for this kind of approach. As an Čadovska, I. 2012. ‘Funkcionalnost hrvatskih
infrastructure linking research, education, and baštinskih digitalnih zbirki.’ MA thesis,
public engagement, it enables consistency, trans- Sveučilište J. J. Strossmayera u Osijeku.
parency, and scalability across AR, VR, serious Cantarellas, M. À. S. 2023. ‘Archaeological
games, and Minecraft-based learning environ- Heritage for All: A Heritage Site
ments (Kilis et al. 2025, 1). It also aligns with sus- Accessibility Tool (HSAT) for Open-Air
tainability principles by reducing physical pres- Archaeological Sites.’ Archaeologies 19 (3):
sure on the site. ‘Make Osor Great Again’ thus 515–36.