Chemical Engineering

Title: Model interdisciplinary restoration of emblematic monuments of Christianity in α dialogue with society 

Abstract: An innovative scientific method was developed by the Interdisciplinary Team of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) for the restoration of the Holy Edicule of the Holy Sepulchre. This method enabled the integration of specialized scientific expertise into a complex interdisciplinary project. Methods and approaches from various scientific disciplines were utilized, specifically from the fields of architectural engineering, civil engineering, ρθραλ, surveying and geoinformatics engineering, materials science and engineering, information technology, archaeometry, and archaeology. The tools involved in addressing the core scientific challenges and the main necessary steps taken to implement the project are explained and described herein. There is also reference to cultural policy, emphasizing the benefit of interaction between ideas, institutions, and the public interest in protecting monuments.

These aspects, together with project planning, organizational structure, and comprehensive governance based on management functions, shaped a productive interdisciplinary agenda. The core of the restoration was carried out within a framework of cutting-edge science and innovative engineering applications. The preservation and enhancement of the monument’s values consistently remained at the heart of the restoration interventions. Thus, the Holy Edicule is once again emerging as a symbolic center of innovative applications, research, and education. The combined use of digital documentation technologies with innovative analytical and non-destructive techniques—including numerical, computational, and 3D methods, archaeometric and archaeogenomic approaches—supports the creation of an interdisciplinary, multispectral model aimed at the sustainable preservation of cultural heritage.

The project's communication strategy, based on NTUA’s strategic partnership with the National Geographic Society and under the blessings of the Three Christian Communities, virtually brought 3 billion people to kneel before the Tomb of Christ. This proved to be a catalyst for the successful completion of the project and initiated a continuing dialogue with society, in which the media played and continue to play a significant role.

Today, within the framework of the “Evlogon” project, this experience is being completed through the standardization—on digital and holistic foundations—of the model methodology applied to the restoration of the Holy Edicule of the Holy Sepulchre, the seismic protection and enhancement of the mosaics of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, and the restoration of the Catholicon of the Holy Monastery of Varnakova. This enables the technical community to fully utilize the methodology. In this context, the ongoing Hyper-Scientific Dialogue between theoretical, natural, and technical sciences and society is further reinforced.