Preserving Heritage in the Digital Age

New experience

On a weekend morning in mid-August, Nguyen Thanh Sung, a second-year student at Ho Chi Minh City Open University, took his 75-year-old grandfather, Nguyen Canh, to visit the War Remnants Museum. What impressed him was that even though there was no tour guide like when traveling with a group, he was able to grasp information about all the artifacts on display at the museum through QR codes and communication screens.

Chú thích ảnh — Exhibition space integrates projection and touch with modern technology of Ton Duc Thang Museum.

“The War Remnants Museum has a QR code to view information on the phone, and there are also audio files. My grandfather also uses the headphone service, wherever he goes, he just needs to press the number button to listen to the commentary. When he has a sore leg and sits down to rest, he can still listen to the content to grasp more information. This is very suitable for elderly people like my grandfather,” Sung shared.

The automatic headset and guide system at the War Remnants Museum has helped visitors actively choose the content to learn, both clearly and avoiding noise pollution. This small change shows the Museum's efforts to apply technology to enhance the experience, while demonstrating professionalism in serving visitors.

Not only improving services, museums in Ho Chi Minh City have boldly implemented many large-scale digitalization projects. The War Remnants Museum has installed touch screens to introduce the tour route; applied 3D technology to topics, such as Hologram projection in the exhibition " Dien Bien Phu in the air - 50 years in review"; applied 3D scanning technology to restore valuable artifacts.

In particular, from the end of 2024, the Museum will put into operation automatic ticket machines, integrating zero-dong ticket issuance for Ho Chi Minh City residents on major holidays. In early August 2025, automatic commentary services in 8 official languages will be put into service for international visitors.

Similarly, the Ton Duc Thang Museum has also digitized its exhibition and tour activities. Nguyen Nhat Nam Anh, a student majoring in Library and Information Science at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ho Chi Minh City, commented: “The exhibition space at the Ton Duc Thang Museum is very rich, combining screens, glass, and direct interaction with the artifacts. This experience is much more interesting than just reading captions and viewing still images.”

“Ton Duc Thang Museum combines modern and traditional elements. Many old excerpts are integrated into the modern system, helping visitors access original documents that cannot be found online. This is the reason why I always spend time going to the museum to contemplate artifacts and pictures from the past,” Ngoc Mai, a young history lover visiting the Ton Duc Thang Museum, added.

Direct interaction between visitors and historical artifacts displayed through digital methods has helped visitors feel like they are witnessing events happening around them, attracting and captivating visitors. These are the positive effects that museums in Ho Chi Minh City are aiming for.

Teacher Ta Ngoc Mai, Kindergarten 10A (Bay Hien Ward, Ho Chi Minh City) commented: “The exhibition space is designed to be suitable for children, helping them easily absorb history through vivid images. I want to bring students here to sow the seeds of patriotism early.”

Digitizing to preserve and disseminate heritage

Along with the public experience is the persistent effort of museums in the digitalization process. In 2024, the Ho Chi Minh City Branch of the Ho Chi Minh City Museum completed the project "Digitalizing the Ho Chi Minh Museum Space" in collaboration with Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, Meta Art Company and Vietnam Tourism Magazine. The project applies advanced graphics technology, allowing visitors around the world to experience virtual museums with 3D space, interacting like real life.

In 2024 alone, the website bennharong.vn recorded more than 3.1 million visits, a 13-fold increase compared to the previous year. This is a clear demonstration of the appeal of digital museums, when geographical barriers are no longer an obstacle.

Mr. Pham Thanh Nam, Director of Ton Duc Thang Museum, said that the Museum has 3D scanned more than 40 artifacts, built an electronic database of all preserved documents, and deployed software to manage artifacts that meet museum standards. From the beginning of 2025, the modern exhibition space at Ton Duc Thang Museum with interactive technology, 3D projection, virtual reality (VR/AR) officially opened, attracting a large audience, especially young people.

Digital technology has allowed the museum to recreate historical relics and works of art in a realistic and vivid way. Not only stopping at displaying artifacts, visitors also have the opportunity to admire the delicate details, beautiful colors and space of each period.

The feeling of being lost in a vivid historical painting has created a magical experience for the visit. However, according to museums, the digitization process also faces many difficulties such as limited human resources specialized in museums and information technology; 3D scanning equipment and data storage require large investments; digital data security poses high requirements... However, museums identify this as an inevitable path to sustainable preservation.

According to Mr. Pham Thanh Nam, in the coming time, Ton Duc Thang Museum will continue to apply artificial intelligence (AI), expand cooperation with domestic and foreign museums, aiming to become one of the typical digital museums in the country.

It can be seen that digital transformation in museums is not only a trend, but also an urgent requirement of the times. Ho Chi Minh Museum Ho Chi Minh City Branch, Ton Duc Thang Museum, War Remnants Museum and many other museums have been making efforts to apply modern technology to contribute to the preservation of heritage and spread history, thereby nurturing love for the homeland and country in every Vietnamese citizen and international friends. That is also the way museums integrate into contemporary life, becoming a "borderless school" for the whole community.

According to VNA

Source: https://baoangiang.com.vn/bao-ton-di-san-trong-thoi-dai-so-a427817.html