{"id":781,"date":"2025-04-23T15:52:51","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T15:52:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/?page_id=781"},"modified":"2025-04-23T15:52:51","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T15:52:51","slug":"st-andrews-cathedral-minecraft-digital-reconstruction","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/st-andrews-cathedral-minecraft-digital-reconstruction\/","title":{"rendered":"St Andrews Cathedral \u2013 Minecraft Digital Reconstruction"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-neve-link-color-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-60a53523cb994adb47b5e66208384181\" style=\"border-style:none;border-width:0px;padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\"><strong>240022601<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The St Andrews Cathedral \u2013 Digital Reconstruction prototype I presented for the course IS5110 (Digital Heritage and Preservation) is built using one of the most famous sandbox games, Minecraft. This is a form of 3D reconstruction, adopting a more creative approach that could potentially attract a broader audience because of the popularity and educational potential of the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Due to time and skill constraints, only the core part of the site has been recreated. A video tour with narration (recorded by me) was added to simulate the experience of a virtual visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For future development, the exhibit could potentially expand into a more detailed and fine-tuned model. This might include a dual reconstruction: both the original cathedral and the current ruins I have partially recreated. It could also include more detail for each gravestone, in memorial of the people of St Andrews whose souls remain with the cathedral.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moreover, it could support more interactive actions\u2014such as allowing people to explore the reconstructed site directly within Minecraft in a server-like way, without needing to download any extra files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-background is-style-default\" style=\"background-color:#0a8078;color:#0a8078\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-52a6897339f6fca8bdbb130c05b24e46\" style=\"color:#5475b7\">Climate Threats<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately, during my exploration of old photographs of the cathedral, it became clear that the ruins have already been visibly weathered over the centuries. The differences between photos show ongoing deterioration, with more gravestones being fenced off, and more areas of the site closed for repair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a coastal heritage site in Scotland, it remains vulnerable in the long term due to the impacts of climate change\u2014especially strong winds and rain, which can further accelerate its deterioration. Digitally reconstructing the site in Minecraft helps preserve its current form as a visual and educational record, considering the uncertainty of the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-background\" style=\"background-color:#0a8078;color:#0a8078\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a7a540643f8397db2633ac259ad9eeea\" style=\"color:#5475b7\">Related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>SDG 13 \u2013 Climate Action<\/strong> : This exhibit aims to raise awareness of how climate change can affect cultural heritage sites, encouraging reflection and potential action.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>SDG 11 \u2013 Sustainable Cities and Communities<\/strong> :  By digitally preserving a historic site and making it accessible from home, the exhibit supports the goal of 11.4: Protect the world\u2019s cultural and natural heritage.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>SDG 4 \u2013 Quality Education<\/strong> :  The Minecraft model and guided video offer a creative and accessible way to learn about history, architecture, and sustainability, especially for younger audiences.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-background\" style=\"background-color:#0a8078;color:#0a8078\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-574521c6b154d38ca50b5cf008c6e806\" style=\"color:#5475b7\">Video Tour<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><em>A guided walkthrough of the reconstructed cathedral in Minecraft, with subtitles and narration. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"nv-iframe-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"St Andrews Cathedral \u2013 Minecraft Digital Reconstruction for IS5110\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/NbWznd-m2_4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-background is-style-default\" style=\"background-color:#0a8078;color:#0a8078\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ddb25a4d43e961bcd8c3abf27366e8f9\" style=\"color:#5475b7\">Gallery <\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"665\" data-id=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral1-1024x665.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-810\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral1-1024x665.png 1024w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral1-300x195.png 300w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral1-768x499.png 768w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral1-1536x998.png 1536w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral1-2048x1330.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Overview of the entire reconstruction from above<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"811\" src=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral2-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-811\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral2-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral2-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral2-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral2-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral2-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral2-2048x2048.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Honoring St Andrews\u2019 fallen from both World Wars.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"813\" src=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral3-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-813\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral3-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral3-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral3-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral3-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral3-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral3-2048x2048.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Featuring the iconic paired towers and the oldest surviving tower on site.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"814\" src=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral4-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"West Tower\" class=\"wp-image-814\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral4-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral4-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral4-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral4-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral4-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral4-2048x2048.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The irregular remains of the cathedral\u2019s west side<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"816\" src=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral6-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"West Entrance Arch\" class=\"wp-image-816\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral6-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral6-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral6-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral6-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral6-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral6-2048x2048.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">One of the most photographed spots\u2014framing the east front beautifully<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"815\" src=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral5-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-815\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral5-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral5-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral5-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral5-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral5-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/04\/cathedral5-2048x2048.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A popular photo spot\u2014even without stepping inside the grounds<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-alpha-channel-opacity has-background\" style=\"background-color:#0a8078;color:#0a8078\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f9275a848eb37e8fc2dc6e99988fbf19\" style=\"color:#5475b7\">Explore the site yourself <\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30)\">This digital reconstruction of St Andrews Cathedral was built in Minecraft Java Edition as part of a coursework project for IS5110 \u2013 Digital Heritage and Preservation. If you\u2019d like to experience the site firsthand, you can download the world file and explore it on your own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/16xq0Q26bVnU3KJKfCFCbcKNzWYp7S2PK\/view?usp=share_link\"><em>Download the Minecraft Reconstruction of the cathedral (.zip)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1263c62ffbb1afd5e9821859c2995d8a\" style=\"color:#ab4338\"><strong>(Requires Minecraft Java Edition)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to open it:<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Download and unzip the file.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Move the extracted folder into your Minecraft&nbsp;saves&nbsp;directory:~\/Library\/Application Support\/minecraft\/saves&nbsp;( For Mac Users )<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Open Minecraft, select&nbsp;&#8220;<strong>Singleplayer<\/strong>&#8221; , and launch the world.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>( This build is not to scale, and many details were interpreted freely. But I hope it offers a quiet space to reflect, explore, and imagine. )<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-border-color has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-873ba71e65b801de0256ee6e2434563a\" style=\"border-color:#2f59ad70;border-style:dotted;border-width:2px;color:#16395eed\"><strong>Thank you for walking through this space with me.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>240022601 The St Andrews Cathedral \u2013 Digital Reconstruction prototype I presented for the course IS5110 (Digital Heritage and Preservation) is built using one of the most famous sandbox games, Minecraft. This is a form of 3D reconstruction, adopting a more creative approach that could potentially attract a broader audience because of the popularity and educational&hellip;&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":168,"featured_media":810,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-781","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=781"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/781\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2619,"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/781\/revisions\/2619"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/810"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.openvirtualworlds.org\/worldheritage2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}