Virtual time travel through pre-reformation Edinburgh

In “A View from a Hill”, a ghost story by M. R. James, an archaeologist’s binoculars allows them to see scenes from the past. The Edinburgh 1544 project enables visitors and residents of Edinburgh to see the city as it was just prior to the reformation.

We use mobile phones and the Google Daydream platform to deliver an onsite dual reality experience. As visitors explore the sites of Edinburgh, they can see into the past using their digital time travel binoculars. The app is mobile and orientation aware, automatically delivering the correct view. A map interface allows an engaging experience for remote virtual visitors as well.

Virtual Time Binoculars - Edinburgh 1544 from Smart History on Vimeo.

The binoculars app enables the user experience to be optimised for technology they already have in their pockets.

• It makes virtual time travel a reality and available to mass audiences. 
• It provides a new way of interacting with the past that both enriches the visitor experience and provides insights into the past not otherwise readily available.  

What is the research? 
The VTB design draws upon EPSRC-funded research at the University of St Andrews into dual reality systems where the virtual and real worlds occupy the same space. Position and orientation within the two worlds are synchronised enabling intuitive exploration of both worlds through movement in the real world. The Smart History team investigated dual reality systems through exploring inside (St Salvators Chapel) and outside (St Andrews Cathedral) using modified Oculus Rift and Google Cardboard VR headsets. This led them to observe that users tended to look around whilst using the headsets.

Observation of users led the researchers to a viewpoint-oriented approach, where high fidelity 360 photographs of a reconstruction were used and developed in the UNREAL4 Game Engine. This allowed the digital content to be hosted and displayed on mobile platforms and does not require the virtual reality viewer to be tethered to a bulky computer.

How is it applicable? 

Pre-reformation Edinburgh Netherbow

This research has been applied within The Virtual Time Binoculars (VTB) project and is a core component of the Smart History company founded by Dr Katie Stevenson from the School of History and Dr Alan Miller from the School of Computer Science. The VTB is a Edinburgh Digital Launchpad project funded by Innovate UK.

In VTB the team developed a digital reconstruction of pre-reformation Edinburgh. The Smart History team brings together a multi-disciplinary team of Computer Scientists, Digital Designers, Digital Media producers, Historians and Museum Professional. They have CAA-approved drone pilots, Google-approved 360 photographers and prize-winning historians working together to create engaging mobile onsite experiences.

The historical work has been conducted in consultation with Prof. Richard Fawcett of the School of Art History and John Lawson, a Edinburgh City Council Historian. They also worked with the National Trust for Scotland and the Timespan Museum and Gallery in developing the technology used in the app. They have worked with Edinburgh City Museum to provide a permanent showcase for the project.

The Medieval Edinburgh App was launched at the start of May 2017. It is expected that the VTB will become a ‘must have’ part of the experience of visiting Edinburgh.
View reconstructions
More information

Music Planet - exploring research through music

Music Planet explores the broadest concepts of Environment and Music. The series will draw on academic research across all disciplines from arts to social science and science to present new concepts that have an impact on all society. The series will present the research messages with reflections made through the performing arts from classical through to new contemporary music. From the comfort of the well-known to explorations in improvisation with both traditional and new composition Music Planet will challenge you to think deeper about life and your planet.

Throughout the centuries, artists have used their chosen media to reflect on nature and human reaction to it. From personal experiences to depictions of catastrophic events works have been created to try and bring sense to natural environments and our place within them. Music Planet takes its theme from these reflections. It will present a series of performance events to reflect on environment in its broadest sense. Some events will focus on Environment in terms of natural elements such as climate and societies response to changes in climate others will explore societal attempts to control environments.


Each event is co-presented by artists together with groups of academics from the arts, social sciences and sciences in order to allow relevant aspects of academic research to be explored. The events are designed to be co-participatory with public audience becoming engaged with the delivery of the event. Before, during and after each event there will be on-line information for exploring further the academic research story behind the events.

Music Planet grew out of an idea that Dr Richard Bates had to perform some of the late Sir Peter Maxwell Davis’ works and link into climate research being conducted by the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. Sir Peter was an active campaigner on climate issues and cared passionately about the environment of his adopted homeland, Orkney. His music often explores sounds from natural environments and provides an inspiration to us all. From early discussions with the Music Centre at St Andrews and, in particular with the enthusiasm of Michael Downes, Jill Craig and Bede Williams, Music Planet was born.

The ever growing list of individuals involved in Music Planet include staff at the Music Centre, several Schools at the University of St Andrews, as well as some external organisations.

For a full listing of events, click here.

Interfacing with historical reconstructions through Open Virtual Worlds

In a similar way as the PiXaR film Brave, set in an imaginary Scottish castle, introduced millions to Scottish landscapes or computer games such as Assassins Creed enable exploration of historic scenes, the Virtual Time Travel Platform (VTTP) of Open Virtual Worlds enables authentic recreations of community settings as they were in their heyday. The combined experience of Dr Alan Miller, Lisa Dow and Dr Colin Allison (School of Computer Science) in both systems research and technology-enhanced learning, and the domain expertise of Dr Rebecca Sweetman (School of Classics), Prof. Richard Fawcett (School of Art History) and Tom Dawson (School of History), has been instrumental in adapting and developing emerging 3D technologies to create digital interpretations of the past and connected them to local communities. Where Brave presents a single pathway through a fictional narrative, VTTP enables visitors to explore authentic scenes; and, where Assassins Creed delivers pre-defined scenarios to a global audience, VTTP enables community participation in the creation and exploration of scenes directly connected to actual historical communities. Some examples are the Time installation which features a pre-clearance Caen Highland Township, a reconstruction of the St Kilda world heritage site, and the virtual St Andrews Cathedral. The low equipment cost and support for content creation make embedding the VTTP available to small museums for the first time. The Timespan VTTP installation, for example, with a 300” wrap-around display, natural body movement control and visually powerful 3D graphics, forms a highly effective and interactive educational experience.

Additionally, the studies of S1 pupils at Madras College in St Andrews have been enriched as the history of the St Andrews Cathedral was "brought to life" for them with the interactive digital displays.
A new mobile app detailing the mediaeval roots of St Andrews has been launched which allows users to explore 22 key sites across the St Andrews via a range of interactive and media tools. The app is free to download via the Google Play store and is available now and features the 1580 Geddy map, generously donated for use by the National Library of Scotland, and special 'guest appearances' from honorary University of St Andrews alumni Sir Sean Connery and Joanna Lumley. Expansion packs to the app are planned for 2015.
The research was funded by the EPSRC, HEA, and the University of St Andrews.

BBC documentation on the Middle Ages

Two BBC television series on medieval subjects: Inside the Medieval Mind (BBC4, 2008) and The Normans (BBC2, 2010), written and presented by world-leading medieval historian, Professor Robert Bartlett of the School of History, have exposed millions of viewers to historical documentary about the Middle Ages. Prof. Bartlett’s main areas of research are the history of medieval colonialism, of the British Isles in the period 1050-1300, and of medieval attitudes towards the natural and the supernatural. Inside the Medieval Mind discussed medieval views of issues such as miracles, the way medieval people thought about the physical world and the nature of human society. The Normans was informed in part by Prof. Bartlett’s earlier work on medieval colonialism and conquest.

Prof. Bartlett's will be discussing his latest book, "Why Can the Dead Do Such Great Things?: Saints and Worshippers from the Martyrs to the Reformation" (Princeton University Press, 2013) at the Oxford Literary Festival on 25th March and the Buxton Festival on 26th July.