Every hypothetical reconstruction that can serve as a vehicle of information - not only on what can be viewed directly, but also and especially on those elements that are difficult to read or decipher - is consistent with the principles expressed in the restoration charters. The highlighting of educational value of ruins and making them comprehensible are, as we have seen, objectives common to both restoration and virtual archaeology.
Based mainly on digital technology, the latter resolves the problems of irreversibility, chemical-physical compatibility and minimum intervention posed by "physical" restoration, which is aimed purely at conservation.
Virtual archaeology also resolves in part the contradictions and limitations of physical restoration and fulfils the aspiration it has always had of bringing back to life the beauty and inspirational power of lost architecture, responding to an important imperative already found in the earliest principles of restoration. Virtual archaeology proceeds by means of a systematic study which is as "transparent" and intelligible as possible, its evolution being fully logged and therefore "traceable". It seeks to provide the public with interpretative information on monuments and works of art whose appearance has been damaged or compromised. In this process of study, all the information derived from the various disciplines
associated with archaeological research converge in a "model of knowledge" of the monument, which may thus be seen as a "synthesis" of the data gathered. The virtual scenarios built around this body of information have not only the task to inform, but also the task to teach and to amuse, combining together technical and educational requirements with enjoyment, relaxation and entertainment. The formative message of a virtual scenario develops specifically in this context, with the aim to accelerate and promote the cultural growth of individuals, providing them with a quality of entertainment that only scientific rigour can ensure. The phases that precede this concluding moment of archaeological research are so complex and interdisciplinary that they are of intrinsic value not only for the virtual-archaeology based reconstruction, but also in regard to policies
devoted to the local development of cultural tourism. So, any scientific communication product based on the rigorous methods of virtual archaeology is a valuable resource that should be understood as able to generate economic and cultural wealth.
On the basis of these premises, IBAM ITLab has developed projects of virtual archaeology that have enabled the attainment of fundamental scientific results, through the definition of methods and effective procedures for survey and representation. It has also been possible to present these results in the framework of museum and educational contexts, by means of products designed to be informative to mixed and non-specialist audiences.
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