1000 Years of the Olympic Games: Digital reconstruction at the home of the gods

This paper results from a recently completed project that augmented an exhibition at the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney entitled 1000 Years of the Olympic Games: treasures of ancient Greece (July 18 - November 18, 2000). This Exhibition offered an opportunity to supplement the traditional visitor experience with the introduction of 'virtual reality' components. These include: a 3D digital reconstruction of the archaeological site of Olympia, in 200 BC; the laser scan of the famous statue of Zeus from the archaeological museum in Athens; and the construction of a large-scale web (http://www.phm.gov.au/ancient_greek_olympics) that combines the Exhibition components with a host of other information sources. The paper reflects on the theoretical concerns companion to the processes of digital reconstructions using historical and archaeological data sets. From this position it is possible to examine the curatorial and technical decisions made in creating the works. An outline of the web architecture and design is presented. A statistical analysis of the web since its launch is also examined.