Using technology typically associated with video games, two SLU theology professors have created an interactive, three-dimensional tour of one of Europe's most important churches.

Jay Hammond, Ph.D., and James Ginther, Ph.D., spent more than a year building the virtual version of Italy’s landmark Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi. Located two hours northeast of Rome in Assisi, the basilica is the third-largest pilgrimage site in the world, drawing more than 5 million visitors annually.

Their three-dimensional model permits virtual tourgoers to walk nearly everywhere in the upper basilica, and even fly up close to the church’s famed frescoes and beautiful stained glass windows. That’s in stark contrast to most other virtual tours of historic buildings, which rely on 360-degree panoramas and offer limited interactivity. While some other projects have been equally advanced, the SLU professors’ tour is one of the first to run on a home computer.

“That’s why we chose a game engine to build our model,” Ginther said. “We wanted to ensure that the virtual basilica would run on the average PC, not just expensive computers that only universities can afford. Preservation has no meaning unless there is access.”

The virtual basilica uses controls and functions similar to popular video games, such as “Quake” and “Doom.”

“We’re both educators, and we wanted this project to connect with young people,” Hammond said. Based on laser-accurate measurements of the basilica, the virtual tour was built with approximately 4,000 photographs, all taken prior to a 1997 earthquake that blew out two sides of the basilica. Because the basilica’s leaders do not replace artwork that has been destroyed, the disc offers a version of the church that cannot be seen today, including frescoes that are forever lost.

The virtual tour is available on the newly released CD-ROM, “The Virtual Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi,” through the Institute of Digital Theology, a nonprofit t foundation affiliated with SLU. Proceeds will fund research, similar digital projects and student scholarships. The CD-ROM also features maps of the basilica as well as guides for the frescoes, which were painted by some of the leading artists of the day. The tour features 175 links for additional information and a 35,000-word text. There also is an animated friar for scale. The CD-ROM is designed for Windows 2000/NT/XP. Purchase it at www.digitaltheology.org.

With the upper level of the basilica complete, the SLU professors will create similar virtual tours of the lower church, crypt and exterior gardens. In June, the duo will begin working on a virtual tour of York Minster in York, England, the largest Gothic church in northern Europe.

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