A blockchain-based platform for ensuring provenance and traceability of donations for cultural heritage

Abstract

The preservation and restoration of cultural heritage has acquired increasing attention in recent years since it has priceless value from both historical and touristic points of view. However, this activity requires considerable funds to be carried out, and frequently, such costs cannot rely entirely on public sources. At the same time, crowdfunding platforms are becoming a widely recognized way to collect funds and finance projects. Indeed, in the literature, some attempts have been made to use crowdfunding platforms to support renovation and restoration projects for cultural heritage items. Even if the benefits of their use in general, particularly for cultural heritage, are widely recognized, skepticism remains regarding transparency, reliability, and trustworthiness. In this regard, the emerging blockchain technology could represent an innovative solution for promoting and guaranteeing such properties through the entire crowdfunding process. However, existing solutions based on the direct use of cryptocurrencies for collecting funds have encountered users' fear and reluctance due to their novelty and the absence of clear and complete regulation by governments. For this reason, in this paper, we propose a solution that is not based on using cryptocurrencies but concentrates on the immutability, traceability, and trustworthiness properties that blockchain offers. To do so, an integrated solution is proposed that combines traditional platforms with a set of smart contracts and a Decentralized Application (dApp), allowing the immutable storage of information inside the blockchain and their subsequent validation by the donors.