The face of millennia comes to life through 21st-century technology

🔴 How does artificial intelligence depict our ancestors?

🔴 Scholars emphasize the importance of even small details for historical accuracy

At the museum of the Center of Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan, the “First Renaissance Era” exhibition will be presented in a more impactful way through short media productions created with the help of artificial intelligence.

These films have been produced by the Italian design company Magistr Art, with over 20 new media contents planned to be shown across 7 capsules of the exhibition. Their initial samples were reviewed with the participation of Bahrom Abduhalimov, Vice-President of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, working group members, filmmakers, and field scholars.

The first three capsules of the “First Renaissance Era” are dedicated to the arrival and development of Islam in Transoxiana, the sacred pillars, Sufism, jurisprudence, the science of hadith, and the legacy of great hadith scholars.

During the discussions, it was emphasized that the films should pay special attention to details such as radiant facial features, historically accurate clothing, book shelves, writing styles, turbans, and headwear.

Davron Maqsudov, First Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Religious Affairs:

Of course, the exact appearance of our ancestors who lived during the First Renaissance has not reached us. We create their approximate images based on available sources. In the films we reviewed today, we paid particular attention to the logic of the depictions, the attire of the figures, and their faces. For example, unlike Western scholars who wrote with quills, our ancestors used special reed pens, and books on shelves were arranged horizontally. Such aspects need to be corrected in the frames. Likewise, in nearly all of the shown films, the headwear and turbans must be revised. We must accurately reflect the clothing and dressing style typical of that era.

At the conclusion of the discussion, a list of proposals and corrections regarding the films was compiled and presented to Magistr Art.