Solutions from Ukraine: Mobile laboratory Ark III arrives in Chernihiv for first time to digitize cultural heritage
Photo source: Ministry of Culture of Ukraine
The Ark III mobile laboratory has begun operating in Chernihiv, creating digital copies of museum artifacts and monuments directly at their storage locations. This deployment marks the first field trip for the complex, which operates under the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve.
The project aims to help preserve, research, and restore cultural heritage, particularly in regions enduring Russian shelling, as reported by Ukraine's Ministry of Culture, according to Rubryka.
What's the problem?
The war poses a constant threat to Ukrainian cultural heritage. Museum collections and architectural monuments in frontline regions risk damage from Russian attacks, making it essential to document their condition and preserve information about them, even if the originals are destroyed.
What's the solution?
The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine is expanding the use of digital technologies to preserve cultural heritage. Officials are paying special attention to protecting cultural assets in regions suffering from Russian attacks.
Digitization enables experts to record the condition of museum items and monuments while preserving information about them for future generations, scientific research, and restoration work.
"Digitization of cultural heritage is not only the implementation of modern technologies, but also a vital tool for its preservation in wartime conditions. High-precision digital copies make it possible to record the condition of museum items and values, preserving information about them for future generations, research, and restoration work. It is especially important that such capabilities are accessible to institutions in frontline regions, where cultural heritage faces daily threats," emphasizes Deputy Minister of Culture for Digital Development, Digital Transformations, and Digitization Anastasiia Bondar.
Chernihiv became the first city visited by the mobile complex.
How does it work?
To digitize cultural assets, specialists use the Ark III mobile laboratory, which Czech experts designed for work in crisis conditions and war-affected regions.
Engineers built the mobile laboratory on the chassis of a Volkswagen Crafter vehicle. The unit features:
- Modern 3D scanners
- Photogrammetric systems
Photo source: Ministry of Culture of Ukraine
Using this equipment, specialists create high-precision digital copies of museum items and monuments directly at their storage sites. The technologies allow experts to work with both small artifacts and large-scale architectural structures.
The mobility of the complex allows specialists to work with collections from various cultural institutions without the need to transport the objects themselves.
Photo source: Ministry of Culture of Ukraine
Czech partners handed the laboratory over to the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in May 2026. At that time, Ukrainian specialists from museums and reserves completed their initial training on the equipment. In September, Lavra employees continued advanced training.
Background
Ark for Ukraine forms part of the international initiative "Support Ukrainian Culture." The Ministry of Culture of Ukraine launched the project in cooperation with the National Museum of the Czech Republic and in partnership with the Karel Komárek Family Foundation (KKFF).
It should be noted that specialists transferred a ceramic composition by Ukrainian ceramic artist Vasyl Melnyk—which previously decorated the swimming pool at the Children's City Clinical Hospital—to the Vasyl Krychevskyi Poltava Regional Museum for restoration and long-term preservation. Activists rescued the artwork after workers dismantled it during pool renovations and wrote it off the hospital's balance sheet.
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