A royal stamp of approval

Robert Mott from Epsom and Ewell U3A talks about an exciting joint project with the Royal Philatelic Society in London to create a virtual museum.

The project which started in September and completed on 5^th December 2017, involved a group of U3A members taking part in research, photography, text writing and oral recordings to develop a virtual online tour.

The tour  has audio, text and photographic content and showcases items from The Museum of Philatelic History at the Royal Philatelic Society London.

Although the items in the museum relate to stamp collecting and the history of postal services many of the items are also of interest from a social history, industrial archaeology or family history perspective.

The result is now live on the app izi.TRAVEL and can be downloaded for free from the appropriate device store.

Working with Juliet Turk, the Curator of the Museum, we wanted to develop a virtual tour from the user perspective.  The only way to engage with the collections had been either through a visit in person (where less than 10% of the collection is on display) or via the online catalogue. The museum wanted to develop an immersive experience and something that would interest both a philatelist and non-philatelist.

Julia Turk said, “Altogether we have 17 objects ready to showcase on the app. The U3A members we worked with were fantastic and very enthusiastic. As a result of the project, everyone involved has researched our objects more and learned some interesting stories about individuals, themes in collecting and specific processes relating to philately such as lithographic printing. The work the volunteers have undertaken not only contributes to the user side of the app but internally will enhance future research visits, future permanent and temporary exhibitions, and assists with developing our understanding and historical significance of the amazing collections as a whole”

Thank you to Burt Lichtman, Barry Cambell, Brigitte Guillaumet,  Jo Walters, Linda Crook and all those Members who made this happen.  Quite an achievement for a group of Third Agers to embrace technology and produce a virtual museum using the iziTRAVEL app.