CTP Ontology: An Ontology for Creating and Structuring Cultural Thematic Paths

A thematic path is a tool for the enjoyment of cultural heritage that allows the connection of cultural objects of different nature through the identification of common themes. This study aims to develop the Cultural Thematic Path (CTP) Ontology, an ontology for the creation and structuring of cultural thematic paths, in order to support the linked data publishing and managing for the enjoyment of cultural heritage in the GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums) domain. Despite the literature revealing that numerous ontologies deal with managing and describing cultural resources related to the GLAM domain, the absence of a schema capable of fully depicting and representing thematic paths is highlighted. In this work, all the phases of ontology development are presented, from design assumptions to the ontology requirements specifications, from the implementation activity to the description of the ontology’s defined entities and properties.