Paneva-Marinova, DesislavaMárkus, Zsolt LászlóSzkaliczki, TiborGoynov, MaximSzántó, GyörgyLuchev, DetelinVeres, MiklósPavlov, RadoslavWeisz, ZsoltPavlova, LiliaMartonosi, PatrikHidán, AttilaRangochev, KonstantinCampana, StefanoFerdani, DanieleGraf, HolgerGuidi, GabrieleHegarty, ZackaryPescarin, SofiaRemondino, Fabio2025-09-052025-09-052025978-3-03868-277-6https://doi.org/10.2312/dh.20253082https://diglib.eg.org/handle/10.2312/dh20253082Virtual Reality (VR) revolutionised the way the users can perceive virtual or distant spaces and interact with them. The users wearing VR headsets have the impression as if they would look around at the real place of the sights. The technology is widely used in entertainment and training. Our goal was to examine how the VR technology can be applied to present sacral spaces. We assembled the virtual reality model of a Bulgarian Orthodox church in a cost-effective manner from high-resolution spherical panorama pictures. A complex VR exploration platform was created by integrating our VR presentation tool with the digital repository of Bulgarian icons and iconographic objects. Due to the integration, additional information can be displayed on specific frescoes of the church in the VR space. We offer a full-fledged virtual exploration of sacred spaces where the experience of moving around the virtual space and exploring the details of the church can be combined with transferring lexical knowledge about the church and its selected objects. The first versions of our virtual walks were available on the Web only. Due to the multiplatform development methodology applied, virtual walks can be demonstrated on VR as well.Attribution 4.0 International LicenseVirtual Reality, Sacred Spaces, Complex VR Exploration Platform, Virtual Encyclopedia of Bulgarian Iconography, BIDL. CCS Concepts: Applied computing → Arts and humanities; Human-centered computing → Human computer interaction (HCI) → Interaction paradigms → Virtual reality; Information systems → Information systems applications → Digital libraries and archivesVirtual RealitySacred SpacesComplex VR Exploration PlatformVirtual Encyclopedia of Bulgarian IconographyBIDL. CCS ConceptsApplied computing → Arts and humanitiesHuman centered computing → Human computer interaction (HCI) → Interaction paradigms → Virtual realityInformation systems → Information systems applications → Digital libraries and archives10.2312/dh.202530829 pages