University News Last updated 21 October 2014
Researchers at School of Jewellery, part of Birmingham City University have helped to bring a new dimension to museum visitors' experience at an impressive new gallery dedicated to the Staffordshire Hoard.
The gallery was opened on 17 October at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and showcases the largest collection of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork ever found, anywhere in the world.
In a joint project between the Jewellery Industry Innovation Centre (JIIC) and Birmingham Museums Trust, craftsmanship meets cutting edge technology to create unique replicas of the Hoard. The team have even managed to create ‘unfolded’ replicas of the ‘folded cross’. You can see how the replicas were made in our video.
The Staffordshire Hoard consists of more than 3,500 items, hundreds of which can be viewed at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BMAG). The replicas created by our researchers are used as handling exhibits.
The project team continue to create replicas, however funding is required to recreate sixteen of the most dramatic objects in the Hoard. To donate to the project, please visit the BMAG website or call +44 (0)121 348 8293.