ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief overview of a recent partnership between the British Museum, a museum of world culture based in Bloomsbury, London, and Pentonville Prison, a male prison located in North London. A key component of both projects in Pentonville was the use of touch and handling. The exhibiting of the 'Throne' in the Chapel of Pentonville was accompanied by a film-making project facilitated by two practising artists, a curator from the African collections and coordinated by the museum's Access Manager. The freedom to touch and hold a variety of contrasting artefacts from the museum's collections, and the use of a range of creative and technical equipment to help the project participants realize their artistic objectives, was critical in engaging the prisoners and sustaining their involvement. A variety of contrasting museum objects and exhibits were chosen to enliven the project with the hope of attracting and sustaining the interest of the prisoners.
