The worlds of digital content and real objects have collided
Culloden Battlefield and Visitor Centre, Scotland
The very first ColliderCase was installed at Culloden Battlefield and Visitor Centre in November 2016. It displays letters from Charles Edward Stuart to King Louis XV.
The letters, which had never been exhibited before, are dated 5th November 1746. Written just 7 months after his infamous defeat the Battle of Culloden, the letters give a rare and fascinating insight into the psychology of the Prince during one of the most frantic and pivotal periods of his life.
The Centre wanted to explore the potential of ColliderCase technology to showcase their new acquisitions in an imaginative and compelling way. They were keen to experiment with the innovative storytelling techniques that ColliderCase offers. The aim was to consider what the letters reveal about Charles whilst placing them in the context of the wider narrative of the battle.
The visitor watches as the ancient french script on the original document glows, delicately highlighting a passage of text, before the illuminated section is temporarily ‘replaced’ with an accessible translation in the visitor’s language of choice. The case at Culloden has seven different language options in addition to large print and audio description.
ColliderCase technology enables this visual transformation to take place. Allowing the visitor to view the letters and scrutinise their meaning without once needing to look away from the precious documents themselves.
The inbuilt sensor within the case allowed the museum to analyse and understand how effectively its message was communicating with visitors. It took account of visits, unique visits, engagement time, party size, age and gender. Six months after the letters first went on display the content was remotely updated based on the results of the visitor data.
In the updated media, the dense language of the direct translations was simplified and the content of each paragraph was captured in a summary to convey the tone and intent of Charles’s original script in a more accessible way. Should the viewer wish to access the translation in full along with additional interpretation this is possible at the conclusion of the updated, more succinct initial sequence.
The Collidercase at Culloden has brought these intriguing letters into the public eye for the first time and displayed them in a way that enhances the story of Culloden, painting an ever more captivating picture of this already complex character through the careful examination of his own words.