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RAWIKnowledge Cube Platform

The Digital Intelligence Platform for Cultural Heritage

Integrating GIS, AI, VR and the knowledge of Islamic Civilization to preserve, explore and share our heritage with the world.

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  • AI
  • GIS
  • 3D / VR / XR
  • Knowledge Graph
  • Touch Table
A glowing knowledge cube of heritage images rising inside an Islamic arch at dusk

Explore the Knowledge Cube

Eight interconnected domains. One cultural knowledge ecosystem.

  • Locations & Dynasties

    Countries, cities and ruling houses: the backbone every entry is placed in.

    Register codes: R · L · D

  • Building Types

    Mosques, madrasas, palaces, hospitals, caravanserais…

    Register codes: BT

  • Building Components

    Structural and functional components.

    Register codes: BC

  • Building Elements

    Arches, calligraphy, columns, mashrabiyya, mouldings, muqarnas…

    Register codes: BE

  • Products & Artifacts

    Manuscripts, ceramics, metalwork, textiles, coins, scientific devices…

    Register codes: PR

  • Sciences & Arts

    Astronomy, geometry, medicine, music, philosophy…

    Register codes: SC

  • Scholars

    36 scholars of Islamic Civilization.

    Register codes: SK

  • Inventions

    88 inventions that shaped our world.

    Register codes: INV

  1. 1 · DocumentCapture tangible and intangible heritage through surveys, imaging, archives and oral history, before it is lost.
  2. 2 · InterpretLink sites, objects and traditions to their historical meaning and their significance for communities today.
  3. 3 · TransmitShare heritage with communities, educators and future generations through tools that keep cultural memory alive.

The knowledge model · HHIC

The Hepteract Hypercube of Islamic Civilization

At the heart of the Knowledge Cube is a seven-dimensional knowledge model. Every place, building, object and idea is classified along the same seven dimensions and linked to the others, turning scattered narratives into one coherent network.

  • LLocations · country, city
  • DDynasties
  • BTBuilding Types
  • BCBuilding Components
  • BEBuilding Elements
  • PRProducts
  • SCSociocultural Context · sciences & arts, inventions and scholars
  1. Side 1 · LDLocations & Dynasties
  2. Side 2 · BTBuilding Types
  3. Side 3 · BCBuilding Components
  4. Side 4 · BEBuilding Elements4.A arches · 4.B mouldings
  5. Side 5 · PRProducts
  6. Side 6 · SCSociocultural Context
  • The cube asA knowledge baseLinked, classified entries with 3D models, archives and metadata.
  • The cube asA selection tool in VRTurn the cube, choose from its six sides, explore the result.

Everything is Connected

The Knowledge Cube reveals the relationships between places, buildings, scholars, inventions and cultural context, transforming them into explorable knowledge.

A Cairo minaret is not just a Cairo minaret. It links to its Fatimid and Mamluk predecessors, to Ottoman Istanbul through political history, and onward through stylistic descent. Association mapping, powered by a graph neural network, surfaces these links across every category.

See how it works
The Knowledge Cube at the centre of its eight connected categories
Knowledge Cube
  • Locations39+ countries · 124+ cities
  • Dynasties36 dynasties
  • Building TypesMosques, madrasas, palaces…
  • Museum CollectionsQur'ans, ceramics, metalwork…
  • Building ComponentsColumns, domes, iwans…
  • InventionsMechanical, astronomical, medical…
  • ScholarsIbn al-Haytham, Ibn Sina, al-Khwarizmi…
  • Sciences & ArtsMathematics, astronomy, medicine…

One Knowledge Cube · Many ways in

Three ways to experience the platform

One knowledge model powers three deployment systems. RAWI brings it to the web and to the touch table; its records are built and reviewed in a separate Data Entry app.

  • RAWI · KCWAP

    Try it now

    Web application

    A responsive web app built on WebGL and WebXR, for phones, tablets and laptops. Ideal for education, virtual tourism and personal research.

  • RAWI · KCITT

    Interactive touch table

    The flagship deployment, engineered in Singapore and assembled in the USA, for museums, heritage sites and universities. Tables from 43″ to 65″ 4K, plus a 31.5″ swing monitor and a 15.6″ portable display.

  • VUIIC · MVUI

    Virtual user interface

    A multi-layered virtual interface in an immersive cosmological setting, with a 3D Selections Cube and a modular VR tablet. Home of the Virtual Musepedia of Islamic Civilization.

Built for the Heritage Ecosystem

Knowledge Cube provides a common digital infrastructure for education, research, museums, heritage preservation, cultural tourism and immersive experiences.

  • KCP Education

    Transform heritage education through interactive knowledge and immersive learning.

  • KCP Heritage

    Document, organize and preserve cultural heritage.

  • KCP Museum

    Connect collections to knowledge.

  • KCP Research

    A structured environment for cultural research.

  • KCP XR & Tourism

    Experience history in immersive environments.

  • KCP Touch Table

    Knowledge at your fingertips.

Featured digital heritage projects

Placeholder view of the Sultan Qalawun Complex at sunset

Reconstructing the Memory of Mamluk Cairo

The Sultan Qalawun Complex is one of the buildings showcased in the Knowledge Cube. It shows how the platform moves from the historic city map down to a single arch, combining historical research, architectural knowledge and immersive visualization.

  • 1284–1285 CE · 682–684 AH
  • Cairo, EgyptCity codeL0601
  • MamluksDynasty codeD15
  1. City map
  2. Building type
  3. Component
  4. Element
  5. Details & characteristics
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Connect the World's Museum Collections

Explore artifacts, architectural elements and cultural objects from the most-visited museums of Islamic Civilization, integrated with the Knowledge Cube.

24 museums in the register; a selection is shown here.

  • Museum of Islamic Art

    DohaMU02

  • Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

    Kuala LumpurMU07

  • Topkapi Palace Museum

    IstanbulMU08

  • The British Museum (Albukhary Gallery)

    LondonMU13

  • Photo to come

    Museum of Islamic Art

    CairoMU01

  • Photo to come

    Aga Khan Museum

    TorontoMU10

  • Photo to come

    Department of Islamic Art (Louvre)

    ParisMU12

  • Photo to come

    Museum of Islamic Art at the Met

    New YorkMU21

Knowledge Cube at a Glance

From the Knowledge Cube register · October 2026

Countries
39+
Cities
124+
Dynasties
36
Scholars
36
Inventions
88
Museums
24
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Search & research tools

Heritage as a connected system, not a static catalog

Search finds an item. Six research tools then interpret and connect it, from the raw record to a full XR reconstruction, and each can be scoped to a period on the timeline.

Patented software · VMIC is a trademark of AVRA

  1. Data Acquisition

    Pulls in the raw records, media and measurements for an item.

  2. Characteristics Analysis

    Extracts structured features: form, material, ornamentation and more.

  3. Comparison Engine

    Scores two chosen items against each other, side by side.

  4. Association Mapping

    A graph neural network scores an item's neighbours by dynasty, location and typology, so you can follow the links.

  5. 3D Interaction

    Touch, rotate and examine a 3D model directly on the screen.

  6. XR Transition

    Hands the experience to a headset, so you can step inside the reconstruction.

Bring Your Heritage into the Knowledge Cube

Whether you represent a university, museum, heritage authority, government or cultural organization, AVRA can configure the Knowledge Cube around your collections, research and educational requirements.

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