VISIT THE BANK OF ENGLAND… VIA GOOGLE

The Bank of England Museum recently joined the Google Arts & Culture platform, allowing people from around the world to enjoy virtual exhibitions via the popular, interactive website.

The Bank of England Museum is currently closed, as the galleries and displays are updated, but that doesn’t mean those interested in numismatics and the wider economy cannot discover more about the collections held at the famous bank in Threadneedle Street, which include the world’s largest collection of Bank of England notes, the machinery used in their production and a selection of banknote counterfeits.

The latest online exhibition on the Google platform is entitled ‘Picture The City’ and according to the curators ‘brings together eight landscape paintings from our collection, showing us the beautiful scenery historic London has to offer. These paintings reveal the changing economic landscapes that built this city, as well as the people who have lived, worked and played here.’ Meanwhile, the website features 290 objects from the collections, including over fifty coins, such as a Mexican Silver Dollar from c.1772 featuring fascinating graffiti, a countermarked Bank of England coin from 1793, and a range of 16th-century counting tokens. Find out more and visit the online exhibition at: artsandculture.google.com/partner/bank-of-england

Meanwhile, the website smartify.org also features a selection of online exhibitions from the Bank of England, including an interesting presentation on ‘Symbolic Women’ which explored the role women have played in the design and production of Bank of England banknotes.