Announcement: Conference in Bonn “3D and Virtual Reality in Archaeology. New Applications and Good Practice in Teaching and Research”

Digital methods of documentation in research and teaching are becoming increasingly important for archaeology as a material and object-based discipline. In research these new tools and technologies enable new, extensive insights and improve our understanding of past societies. In teaching and education 3D models and Virtual Reality allow students to further engage and comprehend with human heritage regardless of restricting factors like location, time, and expenses.

We are happy to announce our upcoming conference on “3D and Virtual Reality in Archaeology. New Applications and Good Practice in Teaching and Research” that will take place from the 27th to the 29th of May 2026 in Bonn and online. The conference is part of the EU-funded project Virtual Worlds in Teaching Archaeology, a cooperation partnership of the Universities of Amsterdam, Bonn, Oslo as well as the Open Universiteit. The conference aims to bring together scholars, researchers, teachers, and students to present and discuss recent advances in the development and implementation of 3D models and Virtual Reality in archaeological disciplines with a special focus on research and teaching.

The preliminary programme includes an introduction into the Virtual Worlds project and a presentation of the learning scenarios that were developed by the partners in the project. Furthermore, in the evening there will be a keynote lecture. On the third day workshops regarding the digital documentation and application of 3D models and VR environments will take place.

On the second day, a comprehensive programme of lectures will be offered. Therefore, we encourage submissions from colleagues related to archaeology, art history and educational sciences. Topics relate to:

• Innovative examples of implementing 3D models and VR/XR environments in teaching archaeology

• Innovative applications of 3D models and VR/XR environments in research and its potentials for education and learning

• Advances in 3D technology regarding the creation of 3D models and various types of VR/XR environments

• Ethical aspects and gender issues related to using virtual environments

The conference will be organized by Stefan Feuser, Matthias Lang and Adriana Günzel.

Submissions including title of the paper, abstract (max. 300 words), authors’ name and affiliation as well as contact details may be addressed to Adriana Günzel (aguenzel@uni-bonn.de). The deadline for submitting abstracts is the November 20th 2025. We aim at covering the expenses of the speakers. The results of the conference will be published in a conference proceedings.