The History Hunters — The British Museum × Shoguns Studio

What if children could keep exploring long after they leave the classroom?

Everything that follows is our answer

01What we're offering

An animated series and a whole learning world drawn from the collection.

The History Hunters transforms real objects from the British Museum collection into adventures children actively want to follow. Guided by Miw and two curious young explorers, each episode helps children discover the people, places and ideas behind an artefact, turning a museum visit into the start of a longer learning journey. Designed for classrooms, galleries, YouTube and home viewing, the series creates lasting engagement with the collection long after the lesson or visit has ended.

The History Hunters — Miw and the two kids

02Sample episode

EP.1 The forever picture.

The story

Locked inside the museum after dark, Theo and Amara are pulled into Nebamun's famous painting and transported to Ancient Egypt. There they meet Nebamun himself, a mischievous cat named Miw, and discover that this isn't just a picture of a hunting trip — it's a snapshot of a perfect day that Nebamun wanted to last forever. Along the way they uncover what Ancient Egyptians believed about memory, family, and life after death.

ObjectNebamun's Marsh Scene

Length8–10 minutes

AudienceAges 5–11

CurriculumKey Stage 2 History

ThemesEgyptian beliefs · daily life · tomb painting

IntegrationQR activation beside the original object

Museum

Artefact

Portal

Location

Discovery

03The opportunity

A school visit lasts a day.

A lesson lasts an hour.

A worksheet lasts a class.

A story lasts forever.

The British Museum already reaches thousands of children every year. By transforming real objects into recurring adventures, the Museum can build an ongoing relationship with children long after they leave the gallery.

04Why now

The demand is
already proven.

Capacity

School broadcasts fill

Live sessions reach capacity, term after term.

Demand

Virtual visits book out

Remote learning demand outstrips what can be supplied.

Engagement

Digital resources in daily use

Children already engage with the Museum's learning content every day.

Meanwhile, building works reduce physical access — creating an even greater need for scalable learning beyond London. This isn't a new direction — it's the natural evolution of work the Museum is already doing.

05What is The History Hunters?

Not just a series.
A learning platform.

01 — 06

YouTube series

Free animated adventures inspired by real objects from the collection.

02 — 06

Museum companion

QR codes beside selected objects unlock stories and episodes in the gallery.

03 — 06

Classroom learning

Curriculum-linked resources developed with Museum educators.

04 — 06

Exhibition trails

Character-led experiences designed specifically for younger visitors.

05 — 06

Home learning

Free access for children and families around the world.

06 — 06

Publishing & retail

Books, activity packs and educational collectibles that support the free learning ecosystem.

Inside one of the British Museum's most famous Egyptian paintings… lives a cat.

For over three thousand years she has been hidden in plain sight.

In Nebamun's marsh scene, a tawny cat leaps through the papyrus, hunting birds among the reeds.

We simply wake her up.

06 — Meet Miw · keep scrolling

Not an invented mascot.

Not a fictional addition.

A real character, lifted straight from the collection.

A guide who helps children step inside the stories behind the objects.

08Why character-led learning works

Children remember stories.

Children remember characters.

Children remember feelings.

The British Museum has thousands of remarkable objects. One memorable guide can connect them into a world children want to return to again and again.

09The long-term vision

Children don't fall in love with collections.

They fall in love with worlds and characters.

By turning real objects into recurring adventures, the British Museum can create a world children want to return to again and again.

10Next step

One object.
A world of possibilities.

Nebamun's painting is only the beginning. With a recurring cast of characters and stories drawn directly from the collection, the British Museum has the opportunity to create something few museums have ever built: a children's world.

Let's discuss the next step

Bringing the British Museum to every child.

An animated series and a whole learning world drawn from the collection.