Imágenes cortesía de UNESCO/Kéré Architecture.

For Unesco (United National Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) Francis Kéré has designed an immersive virtual museum of cultural objects stolen from museums, collections, and archaeological sites worldwide. The project aims to raise awareness of the consequences of illegal trafficking of cultural heritage, while helping to recover and repatriate stolen property. The museum is being developed with the collaboration of the international police organization Interpol, whose database lists more than 52,000 missing items.

Some images of Kéré’s scheme have been unveiled, and he has begun work with web developers to turn the concept into digital reality. From 2025 on, visitors will be able to navigate a succession of virtual spaces containing detailed 3D images of the artefacts.

The Guardian: Unesco planning virtual museum of stolen cultural artefacts