The Virtual Museum of Printing
The British Isles led the way in the development of printing technology, trades, and associated crafts. Yet there is no national collection of printing history, nor a national printing archive. The Virtual Museum is a step towards making the many rich and widely-dispersed printing historical collections of the British Isles more accessible to a broader range of audiences.
You can access the Virtual Museum here and browse through its Directory of Printing Collections in the British Isles. A body of case studies is in progress, with the first one, on the Winterbourne Press, available to read. The Museum also hosts a blog, with regular posts about collections and research on printing and publishing history.
If you are an archivist, heritage professional, or associated with a printing collection and would like to contribute to the Directory or be featured in a case study, please email Dr Caroline Archer-Parré (caroline.archer@bcu.ac.uk).
If you have an idea for a blog you would like to discuss, please email Dr Rachel Stenner (rachel.stenner@sussex.ac.uk). Contributions are welcome from anyone, at all career stages and from all backgrounds, with something to say about printing or publishing history and heritage.
Our objective
The objective of the Museum is to bring as much of the printing-historical resources of the British Isles as possible together on one virtual museum site. The Museum offers a platform for print historians, practitioners, and heritage professionals to share information relating to their collections.
This concept allows for improved connections, knowledge transfer, educational and training opportunities. Most importantly, visitors can find information not just about one museum, but about a range of physical collections from all over the country, many of which would otherwise be inaccessible.
Executive Committee
The Virtual Museum is managed and led by its Executive Committee:
Dr Caroline Archer-Parré, Professor of Typography, Co-director of the Centre for Printing History & Culture at Birmingham City University, Chair of the Baskerville Society
Kateryna Crichlow, Birmingham City University
Dr David Osbaldestin, Course Director, Birmingham School of Art, Birmingham City University
Joshua Poole
Dr Rachel Stenner, Chair of the National Printing Heritage Committee, Editor of Publishing History Journal, Reader in Literature and Print Culture, University of Sussex
Dr Shijia Yu, Associate Lecturer of History of Art at the Open University
Financial Supporters
Heritage and Higher Education Sector Sponsorship
Centre for Printing History and Culture, Birmingham City University / University of Birmingham
National Printing Heritage Committee, Printing Historical Society
Corporate Sponsorship
Micropathology, Ltd.
Individual Sponsorship
Private donations
Project updates
October 2022
Get involved:
The Steering Group is currently collecting the names of individuals and organisations who would like to become site contributors, donors, and sponsors, as well as names of individuals and or organisations that have a general interest in the project. There are many opportunities to become involved and help promote this exciting new PHS initiative.
For more information about the Virtual Museum of Printing project or to discuss becoming a donor or sponsor, please register your interest on the VMP holding page.
March 2023
Name change:
The site was launched as the British Museum of Printing (BMoP) in 2020. After advice and consultation in 2022, the Steering Group made the decision to re-name the site as the ‘Virtual Museum of Printing’.
Creation of Executive Committee:
An Executive Committee was established to share responsibility for decision making and speed up the implementation of decisions.
March 2023
Launch date:
The Steering Group anticipates launching the site in the Autumn, accompanied by a launch event and continued promotional activities.
June 2024