A Systematic Literature Review of the Digital Transformation of Cultural Heritage Assets during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The repercussions of COVID-19 resulted in physical movement restrictions in the beginning of 2020. Due to these restrictions, which were imposed due to health policy considerations, cultural heritage assets are now under more pressure to continue operating and preserving their legacy. The approach for the protection and preservation of cultural heritage assets must be upgraded digitally. By conducting a thorough literature analysis, this research seeks to investigate how cultural heritage assets underwent digital change during the COVID-19 epidemic. A total of 334 results were returned for the search term. Unfortunately, only a total of 19 papers that were evaluated to be pertinent to the study issue. The analysis of these 19 papers showed that cultural heritage must be transformed digitally not just for conservation and preservation but also for improving visitor experiences, increasing understanding of the past, and educating, promoting, and managing heritage sites. The use of digital technology is mostly done to boost consumer interaction, enhance business performance, and support management needs. Advanced technologies including augmented and virtual reality, 3D reconstruction, digital twins, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are used to assist these purposes. Heritage managers may now continue their operations by providing visitors with virtual tours and displays. Also, certain institutes of higher learning are utilising this occasion to do study on the digitisation of historical assets. The analysis also suggests that the present stage of research on the digital transformation of cultural heritage assets is digitalisation. This is where technology adoption is focused on automating current business operations and procedures. Therefore, there are more opportunities for exploring the digital transformation of cultural heritage assets in order to reach a greater degree of digital transformation.