Introduction

Egypt’s unique heritage is of worldwide interest and importance due to its continuity over a period of more than 5,000 years. It encompasses various aspects of human civilization, has played a major role in the development of human heritage, and represents a cultural as well as natural treasure of national and international value.

Given the significance of this heritage it was only fitting that a body be established to protect and promote it. This is precisely the goal of the Egyptian Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CULTNAT), which is affiliated to Bibliotheca Alexandrina and supported by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT).

The center’s mandate is to document the various aspects of Egypt's tangible and intangible cultural heritage as well as its natural heritage. This involves the implementation of a national plan of action for heritage documentation, making use of the most up-to-date information technology in collaboration with specialized national and international organizations.

The center also aims to increase public awareness of Egypt’s cultural and natural heritage using all available media and to expand the capacities of professionals in the field of conservation and documentation of cultural and natural heritage. CULTNAT’s current ongoing programs are the Archeological Map of Egypt, Egyptian Architectural Heritage, Natural Heritage, Arts, Photography, Scientific Islamic Manuscripts, and Eternal Egypt on the web.

Recognition of CULTNAT’s success in applying information technology to the field of cultural and natural heritage documentation came with its first international award, the Stockholm Challenge Award 2004 in the field of culture, which was accepted by the center’s director, Dr. Fathi Saleh, for the “Archeological Map of Egypt” project.

Subsequent awards

• The World Summit Award (WSA) November 2005 for CULTNAT’s unique trilingual portal, Eternal Egypt – www.eternalegypt.org – which provides a host of multimedia means for people around the world to learn more about Egypt. The portal was one of 40 winners selected from 750 products from 168 countries competing for best e-content in the culture category.

• Best Innovative or Experimental Application April 2005 Eternal Egypt was also recognized in the Best Innovative or Experimental Application category at the Ninth Annual International Conference for Culture and Heritage Online: Museums and the Web in Vancouver, Canada.

CULTURAMA: Center of Creation

CULTURAMA, abbreviated from Cultural Panorama, is CULTNAT’s fully interactive multimedia program for presenting Egypt’s cultural and natural heritage. CULTURAMA takes its audience on virtual journeys through the different eras of Egyptian civilization, starting with the Pharaonic period, passing through the Coptic and Islamic, and ending with the modern era.

Using a semicircular nine-screen panoramic display with resolution of 7,200 x 600 pixels, CULTURAMA presents a wide range of information that would be difficult to deliver using a standard computer display with resolution of 800 x 600 pixels. The low resolution was chosen by CULTNAT’s multimedia team to achieve the best utilization of memory for multimedia production.

A world-class immersive display system, CULTURAMA is ideal for displaying large scenes that are not served well by regular display systems, such as panoramic images for example. As multimedia applications for display on multiple screens differ dramatically from those designed for single monitors, the CULTNAT team has developed special software techniques to facilitate the development, testing and display of multi-screen applications.

CULTNAT currently has four CULTURAMA sets, three of which are at fixed locations – the center’s Smart Village premises, Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) – while a fourth, portable set is used at local and international conferences and exhibitions.

CULTURAMA, which is currently available in Arabic, English and French, has made a successful impression at numerous international events, including the Frankfurt International Book Fair in October 2004, an exhibition at the Arab World Institute in Paris in January 2005, and the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Tunisia in November 2006.