Researchers want to create a digital Venice for posterity

In recent years, the Italian city of Venice has suffered frequent flooding, which threatens the preservation of its cultural heritage. — AFP

What if Venice was doomed to disappear for eternity, submerged by water? After Venice faced historic floods last November, a team of European scientists began digitising several monuments of the Italian city in July. The goal? To preserve Venice's cultural heritage by creating a digital version of the City of the Doges.

Researchers from the Factum Foundation got this ambitious project (which is supported by the Fondazione Giorgio Cini, the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne and the start-up Iconem) off to a start with the digitalisation of the mythical Basilica of San Giorgio Maggiore.