13 Nov 2015
British Museum teams up with Google to create virtual tour of institution
BY Tom Anstey
A new partnership between the British Museum and Google has made more than 4,500 objects from the national institution available to view online for free.
Partnering with the Google Cultural Institute, a selection of the British Museum’s cultural treasures are now available online in a virtual version of the museum. Using an indoor version of Google’s Street View – the largest indoor space captured using the technology – users can virtually explore the museum’s permanent galleries as though they were walking around them.
In addition, specially-curated exhibits have also been developed for the partnership, which at launch include Celtic life in Iron Age Britain and an exploration of Egypt: faith after the pharaohs.
The in-depth platform also offers never-before-possible access to certain objects. Such examples include the 6th Century Admonitions Scroll, which can now be viewed using Gigapixel imagery – the highest ever resolution image of the fragile relic.
Finally and most impressively, the partnership have created “The Museum of the World” – what is essentially a road map of the museum’s artefacts. Using Google’s Chrome platform, viewers can explore the history of each piece on a virtual timeline split into world regions. Using this map, users can see what was created when and what else was happening at a similar time, offering a new understanding to each timeframe.
“We’re extremely proud to support the British Museum in their mission to be a museum of the world, for the world, through technology,” said Amit Sood, director of the Google Cultural Institute. “It’s an incredible thought that now anyone, anywhere can experience the riches of their expertly curated collection, which is probably the most comprehensive survey of the material culture of humanity in existence.”
British Museum director Neil MacGregor added: “The world today has changed, the way we access information has been revolutionised by digital technology.
“This enables us to gives the enlightenment ideal on which the Museum was founded a new reality. It is now possible to make our collection accessible, explorable and enjoyable not just for those who physically visit, but to everybody with a computer or a mobile device.”
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