In the framework of the Twin it! 3D for Europe's culture campaign (2024), the European Commission and the Europeana initiative invited EU Member States to select and share at least one high-quality, iconic 3D model to create a pan-European collection of 3D digitised heritage assets and thus contribute to a common European cultural heritage data space. Its ultimate aim was the exploration of 3D models of heritage buildings, sites and objects across Europe and the creation of digital twins of them.
The Pyxis of Zamora in Twin it! 3D for Europe's culture
The purpose of Twin it! is the exploration of 3D models of heritage buildings, sites and objects throughout Europe and the creation of digital twins of them.
Twin it! 3D for Europe's culture (2024) was launched in 2023 under the auspices of the Swedish and Spanish Presidencies of the Council of the EU and culminated in 2024, during the Belgian Presidency, with the creation of an exhibition to underpin these aims.
In the case of Spain, the Pyxis of Zamora was the piece chosen to represent us in Twin it! 3D for Europe's culture, after having been selected by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of Spain at the conference of the Spanish Presidency of the European Union in October 2023.
The exhibition entitled The Pyxis of Zamora. A story to tell is connected with the objectives of the Twin it! 3D for Europe's culture campaign and its ultimate aim is to contribute to the dissemination and popularisation of the Pyxis of Zamora.
This object can be physically seen in the National Archaeological Museum, the leading institution interested in our R&D&I reference project PID2020-113405RB-I00/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, entitled Cultural and bibliographic heritage in the GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums) context: virtual exhibitions as agents of dissemination and reuse, funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation, State Research Agency, Government of Spain.
The project aims to enhance the digital experience of the Pyxis of Zamora in relation to Twin it! by providing more than just a simple three-dimensional visualisation of the object.
While Twin it! aims to create a pan-European collection of heritage assets digitised in 3D, facilitating their access and conservation through the Europeana platform, the proposal of this exhibition aims to go a step further by adding to the 3D model a set of stories that facilitate the discovery of the object's trajectory, as well as interpretative materials and other resources that seek to enrich the public's understanding and enjoyment.
Through the virtual exhibition and its book of micro-stories (Arquero Avilés & Marco Cuenca, 2025), users can not only explore the Pyxis of Zamora in detail from anywhere and at any time, but also immerse themselves in its stories, uses and meanings, integrating 3D technology with informative and cultural content.
Thus, the project seeks to transform the digital model into an enriched cultural experience, in line with the current trends of virtualisation and digitisation of heritage, which aim not only to conserve, but also to interpret, disseminate and make cultural heritage accessible to diverse and global audiences.
The virtual exhibition entitled The Pyxis of Zamora. A story to tell (Arquero Avilés, Marco Cuenca & Cobo Serrano, 2025) thus traces a composition of stories around the Pyxis of Zamora that tie in with the context of the exhibition Twin it! 3D for Europe's culture (2024).
Complementary information about it can be found in Europeana: the Pyxis of Zamora, Pyxis of Subh [Museum Objects] (2023) and explored as a digital object in 2D in Google Arts and Culture: the Pyxis of Zamora 2D (undated) and in 3D in Sketchfab: the Pyxis of Zamora 3D (undated) and in the Biblioteca Virtual del Patrimonio Bibliográfico. Bote de Subh (undated).
Bibliography
― Arquero Avilés, R. Marco Cuenca, G. y Cobo Serrano, S. (2025). Exposición virtual: “El Bote de Zamora: una historia contada”. Grupo de investigación IDEA Lab.
― Biblioteca Virtual del Patrimonio Bibliográfico. Bote de Subh (s.f.). Recuperado el 8 de marzo de 2024. Disponible en: https://bvpb.mcu.es/es/consulta/registro.do?id=607905
― Ceres: Red Digital de Colecciones de Museos de España (s.f.). Bote de Zamora. Recuperado el 9 de abril de 2025. Disponible en: https://ceres.mcu.es/pages/Main
― Europeana: Bote de Zamora, Bote de Subh [Objetos de Museo] (2023). Recuperado el 23 de abril de 2025. Disponible en: https://www.europeana.eu/es/item/1092/https___bvpb_mcu_es_bib_BVPB20240000035
― Europeana: Exhibition: Twin it! 3D for Europe’s culture: Explore landmarks and cultural heritage objects from European Union Member States in 3D (2024). Recuperado el 9 de abril de 2025. Disponible en: https://www.europeana.eu/en/exhibitions/twin-it-3d-for-europes-culture
― Google Arts and Culture: El Bote de Zamora 2D (s.f.). Recuperado el 9 de abril de 2025. Disponible en: https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/bote-de-zamora/8wG6zcBsTaRnEQ?hl=es
― Sketchfab: El Bote de Zamora 3D (s.f.). Recuperado el 5 de marzo de 2025. Disponible en: https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/bote-de-zamora-b876f63fc76045eabd4875f82555d8d6
― Twin it! 3D for Europe’s culture: exposición (2024). Recuperado el 23 de abril de 2025. Disponible en: https://www.europeana.eu/es/exhibitions/twin-it-3d-for-europes-culture
― Twin it! Una colección paneuropea de modelos 3D de patrimonio cultural (2024). Recuperado el 23 de abril de 2025. Disponible en: https://www.europeana.eu/es/galleries/15694-twin-it-a-pan-european-collection-of-heritage-3-d-models
― Museo Arqueológico Nacional (s.f.). Imprescindibles. Recuperado el 9 de abril de 2025. Disponible en: https://www.man.es/man/exposicion/recorridos-tematicos/imprescindibles.html