Microsoft AI digitally recreates the site of the first ever Olympic Games

Written by The Daily Mail on November 15, 2021. Posted in Current News

Viewers around the world can see the site of the first ever Olympic Games as it looked in its prime more than 2,000 years ago thanks to a digital reconstruction.

‘Ancient Olympia: Common Grounds’ stems from collaboration between the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sport and Microsoft’s AI for Cultural Heritage initiative.

Microsoft teamed with tech firm Iconem to take hundreds of thousands of images of the ancient site as it lies today — both with ground- and drone-based cameras.

These were processed by Microsoft AI to create models so precise they are photo-realistic and from which the ancient monuments could be digitally reconstructed.

The first games took place in Olympia in 776 BC, and recurred every four years until at least AD 393 and they perhaps continued until the Temple of Zeus burnt in 425 AD.

Common Grounds is available via a web interface, apps for Android and iOS, as well as in a Microsoft HoloLens 2 exhibition now open at the Athens Olympic Museum.

‘With the digital representation of the Panhellenic sanctuary of Ancient Olympia, its cultural heritage becomes accessible to the whole world,’ said Hellenic Republic Minister of Culture and Sports, Lina Medoni.

The state-of-the-art reconstruction, she added, also helps to extol the values of Olympism, peace, harmony, excellence and noble rivalry.

‘The digital preservation project, through the use of artificial intelligence and augmented reality technologies, implemented through the cultural sponsorship of Microsoft, promotes and highlights the unique and emblematic archaeological site.

‘This contributes to the research and documentation of monuments, supports the tourism and extroversion of the country as a modern and strong democracy with a long historical and cultural past and unquestionable development dynamics.’

In total, the Common Grounds experience has virtually preserved 27 monuments at the Olympia site, including the original Olympic Stadium, the workshop of the renowned sculptor Phidias and the temples to Hera and Zeus.

The latter contained the Statue of Zeus, a 41 foot-tall sculpture of ivory and gold sat atop a painted and ornamented cedarwood throne that is famously regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

In the 3D experience, each of the buildings has been painstakingly recreated by archaeologists from the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sport, with each presented with information include histories of the site and contemporary artefacts.

‘Ancient Olympia: Common Grounds is a unique way of experiencing Greece’s proud cultural heritage,’ said the Greek prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

‘Visitors around the world can virtually visit the ancient site of Olympia and experience history first-hand using augmented reality technology.

‘The project to digitally preserve ancient Olympia is a stunning achievement in cultural heritage,’ said Microsoft president and vice chair, Brad Smith.

Common Grounds, he added, brings together ‘humanity and cutting-edge technology to benefit the world and empower coming generations with new ways to explore our past.’

Microsoft Greece, Cyprus and Malta general manager Theodosis Michalopoulos added: ‘We thank the Greek government for the trust and the great partnership it took to make this project a reality.

‘I am looking forward to exploring the different ways we can work together to leverage even further Common Grounds to enhance tourism, education and Greece’s brand name to the rest of the world.’

See more here: dailymail.co.uk

All images: Microsoft

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