DUNHUANG

THE MOGAO CAVES – A HIDDEN TREASURE IN THE GOBI DESERT

Working with the Dunhuang Foundation and Dunhuang Academy, Blueplanet VR has been capturing the remarkable Mogao Caves in China – a UNESCO World Heritage Site – creating rich volumetric VR experiences where the unique caves can be sustainably explored.

The Mogao Caves are one of the world’s great cultural heritage and Asian art sites, dating back over 1,000 years. The site receives millions of visitors a year, and consists of several hundred excavated grottos in the Gobi desert, each containing remarkable displays of Buddhist artwork developed during the height and prosperity of the Silk Road.

The Dunhuang Foundation is a US-based organization with the mission of preserving Mogao’s past and providing for its future with various initiatives, this being one. The Dunhuang Research Academy is a Chinese government-based organization tasked with managing, documenting, and preserving the site.

Our collaboration with these two entities have allowed us to capture several of the caves in unprecedented 3D volumetric detail and accuracy with advanced photogrammetric techniques.

The result is an interactive volumetric VR experience that provides context and understanding to the site, allowing virtual visitation and interpretation to these remarkable, fragile, and priceless environments.

A public release of the experience on VR distribution portals is planned for late 2019, with plans to grow the collection of caves over time.