A Digital Platform for Heritage Data Sharing: The Ecclesiastical Repository for Ecclesiastical Treasures in the NARRATE Project

Abstract. Cultural Heritage (CH) is a shared legacy, and its preservation reflects a collective responsibility to safeguard our common history. The ERASMUS+ project NARRATE – Needs for Digital Recording and Documentation of Ecclesiastical Cultural Treasures in Monasteries and Temples, funded by the European Union, aimed to preserve both tangible and intangible ecclesiastical heritage through the creation of a digital repository. NARRATE focused on the structured documentation of ecclesiastical CH and the management of a digital archive tailored to the needs of the clergy, many of whom are unfamiliar with digital tools. Through user-centered surveys, the project integrated the clergy’s perspectives to ensure the tools developed were accessible and relevant. The repository comprises two components: i) the Interactive Dashboard, allowing users to manage ecclesiastical artifacts and access educational materials, and ii) the NARRATE Server, which comprises a Web application that enables end-users and third-party services to interact with it and exchange data, ensuring interoperability through CIDOC-based semantic metadata. Alongside, NARRATE offers multilingual educational resources, including videos and guides, designed for both clergy and the wider public. This fosters engagement in cataloguing, metadata annotation, and digital storytelling. NARRATE provides an inclusive platform for clergy, scholars, and the public to explore, preserve, and appreciate under-documented ecclesiastical treasures, contributing in this way to a cross-cultural understanding and sustainable heritage preservation.