In 1899 Eton College was trusted with a donation of a collection of Egyptian artefacts on the unfortunate death their collector, Etonian Old Boy Major Joseph William Myers. Over the next century these objects became study tools for Eton students, and the subject of international exhibitions. In 2011 part of this collection was loaned to the University of Birmingham to initiate a 15 year project between themselves, Eton College and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore to accurately catalogue and digitise the objects. Here at the University of Birmingham we are using innovative VISTA techniques to 3D scan these items, with the eventual aim to make this informative, 19th Century private collection into a global resource– accessible via the internet as a virtual museum.
Over the 15 year period the collection will be used for teaching and research within the department of Classics and Ancient History, and has already provided the backdrop of an exhibition exploring communication in ancient Egypt.
