Revitalizing Cultural Heritage: Designing Attractive Virtual Museum In The Metaverse

Abstract The rapid evolution of the digital landscape has catalyzed the integration of blockchain technology within the domain of cultural heritage, particularly in virtual museums within the Metaverse. This study introduces ArchaeoMeta, a novel framework designed to leverage blockchain technology to enhance security, authenticity, and visitor interaction in a virtual museum environment. Deployed on Ethereum testnet, the framework utilizes smart contracts to manage visitor interactions and secure digital artifacts, aiming to resolve challenges associated with scalability and user experience under varying loads. The performance evaluation was conducted by simulating user interactions, scaling up to ten thousand concurrent users to assess the impact on transaction latency, gas usage, and blockchain size. The findings reveal significant scalability challenges as transaction latency and blockchain size increased with the number of users, highlighting areas for optimization in managing high user traffic within the blockchain infrastructure. This study contributes to the understanding of blockchain applications in cultural heritage, suggesting that while ArchaeoMeta offers a robust platform for virtual museums, enhancements in scalability through layer-2 solutions or alternative blockchain platforms are essential for its practical implementation. The framework sets a precedent for future research in the convergence of blockchain technology and cultural heritage preservation, promising a transformative impact on how digital cultural experiences are curated and consumed.