A project designed to transform how collections information is held, accessed and shared across the sector has been launched.
The Museum Data Service, a collaboration between Art UK, Collections Trust and the University of Leicester, is designed to bring together over 100 million museum records from 1,750 accredited museums and other collections across the UK. The aim is to gather together detailed object records and turn them into data that is findable, accessible, interoperable and re-usable.
Those partners say the Museum Data Service will unlock an invaluable resource for researchers, educators, curators and content developers.
The Museum Data Service was launched with an initial collection of 3,129,798 records from 21 museums.
The project, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies and the UKRI Arts and Humanities Research Council, is designed to unlock resources for researchers, educators, curators and content developers.
For museums, the service should offer lots of opportunities for their staff to work more collaboratively. MDS should lead to opportunities to share information with colleagues in the same institution as well as the wider sector. The service is also expected to help museums make decisions over acquisitions and disposal issues.
“The website view of the data is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Kevin Gosling, the managing director of the Museum Data Service.
“There’s a lot more going on in the back end, with innovative features that allow museums to manage their data securely and share it in a controlled way. Building trust across the sector is key, and the Museum Data Service is designed with that in mind.”
Andrew Ellis, Art UK director, said: “From neolithic axe heads and Roman helmets to fossils, masterpieces of art, and iconic fashion pieces, the sheer range of object records that the Museum Data Service will house is extraordinary and will revolutionise our ability to research our museums, make them more accessible and tell untold stories about what they hold.
“This marks the culmination of a remarkable collaboration, reshaping the digital future for museums and galleries. Art UK is proud to be among the first to leverage this groundbreaking service, which has already begun transforming how we manage and present our records. We look forward to seeing museums everywhere embrace this new frontier.”
The Museum Data Services was launched with the records of 21 museums:
- Aberdeen Archives, Gallery and Museum
- Aberystwyth University School of Art Museum and Galleries
- Aldbourne Heritage Centre, Wiltshire
- Amgueddfa Cymru/Museum Wales
- Armagh County Museum
- Diving Museum, Gosport
- Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge
- Jersey Heritage
- Leicester Museums and Galleries
- Loughborough Carillon War Memorial Museum, Leicestershire
- National Gallery, London
- National Museums Northern Ireland
- Norfolk Museums
- Nottingham Museums
- Poole Museum, Dorset
- Science Museum
- Teign Heritage Centre, Devon
- University of Dundee Museums
- University of St Andrews
- Wiltshire Museum, Devizes
- Wotton-under-Edge Heritage Centre
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