The BBC’s nine-part documentary series Civilisations kicked off last week with its first episode. Accompanying the landmark series is the Civilisations Festival, for which Ipswich Museums is a festival partner. The festival is a collaboration between the BBC, museums, galleries and libraries, and endeavours to explore art and culture through history.
Artefacts from the collection at Ipswich Museums have been included in the Civilisations Augmented Reality app. Through your mobile device, you can see artefacts come to life in 3D and through latest advances in AR technology, appear in your own room. The technology, developed by BBC Research and Development and Nexus Studios, allows you to experience art from across the world virtually.
Three objects from Ipswich Museums were selected to be among the 32 on the app, and sit alongside significant artefacts from places such as The British Museum, the National Gallery and the Ashmolean.
A highlight of the Egyptian gallery at Ipswich Museum in High Street is the exquisitely detailed Titus Flavius Demetrius, an Egyptian mask made for a Roman citizen who died in Egypt between 80-120AD, which you can now explore in 3D on the app.
The other two artefacts from Ipswich’s collection on the app are a ‘Carved mask of Noohlmahl’, discovered on Canada’s Pacific coast and believed to be made by the Kwakiutl tribe, and a Maori ‘god stick’ found in New Zealand.
These artefacts and many others can be viewed in 3D in your own room through the Civilisations AR app, available to download now on Android and iOS.
As a festival partner, Ipswich Museums will also be running a series of events to celebrate the interesting objects from the collection included on the app. Details will be released later this month.
