From Material Conservation to Digital Presence: Reconstructing Visitors’ Heritage Experience and Meaning-Making Through Digital Dunhuang

This study explores how the Digital Dunhuang project transforms the heritage experience and the meaning-making of visitors, marking a shift from material conservation to digital presence. Drawing upon Freeman Tilden’s principles of heritage interpretation, this research examines how digital interpretive practices, including virtual caves, interactive installations, and immersive imaging, facilitate a cultural experience that moves “from the tangible to the rational, and from the rational to the emotional.” By comparing traditional on-site visits with digital encounters, the study investigates differences in visitors’ knowledge acquisition, emotional resonance, and conservation awareness. Employing semi-structured interviews and participant observation, the research involves visitors, curators, and project managers, complemented by on-site observations at the Digital Dunhuang exhibition. Findings reveal that digital interpretation not only enhances the accessibility and democratization of cultural heritage but also redefines the aura and authenticity of heritage in the context of contemporary cultural consumption.