The British Museum in London has revealed plans to recreate the entire facility – complete with all of its exhibits – in virtual form using the popular video game Minecraft.

A part of the Museum of the Future Scheme, which aims to expand the institution’s appeal, the museum reached out to Minecraft users via Reddit, though a spokesman for the museum told AM2 that plans were still “at an early stage” and the “build” had not yet begun in any official capacity.

Earlier this month, Minecraft was sold to Microsoft for US$2.5bn (€2bn £1.5bn), mainly thanks to its extreme popularity with a younger audience.

The first step of the process will involve digitally creating the Great Court and facade of the building, which the British Museum hopes will be ready in time for a public debate on 'changing public dialogues with museum collections in a digital age' on 16 October.

Adam Clarke of The Common People, who spoke at length on how Minecraft can get more kids into museums and galleries at MuseumNext in June and has been widely involved in the use of Minecraft within cultural, heritage and educational settings, told AM2: “This project looks amazing and shows that Minecraft is being taken up by institutions all over the world.

“By engaging with Minecraft in this way, The British Museum will actively inspire a new generation of enquiring minds through gaming. The fact that they are inviting the Minecraft community to get involved with the building of this 'world' really connects to the spirit of the creativity that supports the success of Minecraft.”