University History Museums in the Virtual Space

Abstract

The present study focuses on practices of self-representation in the virtual space that are specific to university history museums. The object of the study includes six museums: the Academic Historical Museum of Leiden University, the Helsinki University Museum, the National Cheng Kung University Museum, the University Museum of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, the University of the West Indies Museum. The research is based on analysis of websites and homepages on social networks of these university history museums. The authors elicit ideas and formulas of the mission of a museum of this kind, examine various ways to provide the objective information about museums (address, opening hours, contacts), and also analyze various ways of virtual representation of the university history.