The Hoard Conservation Team at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has donated towards the fundraising of the Keyence 3D digital microscope. The purchase of this essential piece of kit was funded through the generosity of several trusts & foundations who have supported the conservation programme and from public donations given by visitors at BMAG.

The Keyence 3D digital microscope will not only help the Conservation Team with their work in Birmingham and Stoke but it will also benefit the Curators, and Researchers who may wish to view the surfaces in more detail.

A tiny foil seen at x50 using the Keyence 3D digital microscope. 

There is a short video blog showing the equipment in use. Some of the features of the microscope include:

• Large depth of field
• Rotational mount for viewing at angle
• Hand held option (larger items)
• Optimal lighting option, these highlight grain, surface texture (useful to pick up tool marks etc)
• Quality viewing screen (good for public tours, researchers)
• Has a split screen option to compare different areas or the same area at a higher magnification
• Has a range of lenses from 10x – 5000x
• Will capture 2D images, 3D images, , has 2D and 3D stitching (to create a larger image of the surface area) and video.
• The software allows measurements to be taken, so the depth and size and width of foils indents can be measured.

The images and videos produced will also allow us to share our findings with the public via the website and the displays in the galleries.

To keep up to date with all the Hoard news visit the Staffordshire Hoard website.