Introduction A group of 61 handmade, terracotta animal figurines was unpacked from the Acropolis storerooms, inventoried at the Acropolis Ephorate archives during the years 1989-1991, and subsequently put on display in the Acropolis Museum (1st floor, display case 21). They were part of a larger terracotta group of handmade figurines lacking excavation reports but believed to have been found at the same place on the Acropolis during the major archaeological excavations of the 19th century. Th...

Digital transformation can extend the educational, social, and economic value of cultural heritage, but technology-led initiatives frequently remain disconnected from heritage interpretation, learning theory, entrepreneurship, and long-term sustainability governance. This article develops the ATHRIAN Framework as an integrative systems-based model for sustainable digital heritage experiences. Methodologically, the study combines a structured integrative literature review and conceptual synthesis with a formative application at Hadrian’s Library in Athens. The review integrates heritage doctrine, systems and resilience theory, interpretation and experiential-learning scholarship, digital-heritage research, gamification, cultural entrepreneurship, and sustainability governance. Through comparative coding and iterative synthesis, six interdependent dimensions were derived: Heritage Interpretation, Digital Innovation, Experiential Learning, Narrative Engagement and Gamification, Cultural Entrepreneurship, and Sustainability Governance. Eight theoretical propositions and eight design principles translate these dimensions into a research and implementation agenda. The formative application uses an anonymous audience-preference survey (n = 192) collected for an academic project. Descriptive results show strong interest in an interactive exploration experience (132 yes, 52 maybe), high interest in a knowledge-oriented treasure hunt (77.1% rating it very or extremely interesting), preference for a hybrid delivery format (50.0%), and substantial potential willingness to pay (91.7% yes or maybe). These findings are not treated as validation of the framework; rather, they demonstrate how ATHRIAN can guide site-specific design choices and empirical measurement. The article contributes a theoretically grounded, operationalizable framework, clarifies its boundary conditions, and specifies a staged adaptation protocol for future comparative, expert-validation, and implementation studies.