The Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum has debuted a new augmented reality (AR) experience on the National Mall in Washington, DC.
Launched to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the US, the 'Unhidden Heroines' AR experience brings to life the stories of five women who helped shape American history.
It connects the women to iconic monuments on the National Mall, with visitors and users able to explore their stories through geolocation and custom 3D models.
To access the experience, visitors to the National Mall can scan a QR code and hold their devices up to each monument for the stories to appear on screen.
'Unhidden Heroines' is also available remotely across the US from any smartphone or tablet through 31 December at unhidden-heroines.com.
"'Unhidden Heroines' imagines landmarks dedicated to women’s history in the heart of our nation, celebrating the unsung achievements of five remarkable American women on the National Mall and beyond," said Melanie Adams, interim director of the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum.
The five women featured are:
- Polly Cooper, an Oneida woman pivotal to the success of Washington’s Continental Army, at the Washington Monument.
- Julia Ward Howe, creator of a rallying cry for the Union cause during the Civil War, at the Lincoln Memorial.
- Dorothy Height, a civil and women rights activist known as the “godmother of civil rights", at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial.
- Elizebeth Smith Friedman, a cryptanalyst who played a pivotal role in cracking Nazi codes, at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial.
- Mary Katharine Goddard, the printer who published the first signed copy of the Declaration of Independence, at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial.
Museum working on physical home
The legislation creating the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum passed on 27 Dec 2020, and the museum is working with Congress to finalise a site for the physical building on the National Mall.
“We hope witnessing the transformative contributions of these women in a place of such significance will inspire all Americans to envision the powerful stories the museum will tell in this same space, as we progress toward opening our permanent home on the National Mall," said Adams.
Images courtesy of the Smithsonian
