MYSTERIOUS 250-year-old tunnels are set to open for the first time as a brand new attraction.
The abandoned tunnels will form the backdrop to an immersive virtual reality experience.
Stourbridge Glass Museum, in Dudley, has revealed plans to permanently open its historic glassmaking tunnels to the public.
The tunnel network, located beneath the White House Glass Cone site, will form part of a brand new immersive exhibit.
Visitors will be able to view Stourbridge‘s more than 400 years of glassmaking history through VR, animation and projection-mapping technology, which will show the glassmaking process from start to finish.
Although the museum occasionally runs tours of the tunnels, this will be the first time guests will be able to fully immerse themselves underneath the museum.
Alexander Goodger, the director of the Stourbridge Glass Museum, said: “This is just one part of our new phase of capital development designed to boost the site for locals, expand the offer, give it a wider appeal and bring in tourists to the area who then go on to stay in hotels and eat in restaurants, regenerating the area.
“We want to bring in investment for the Black Country’s heritage.”
The tunnels originally existed as storage for glassmaking materials, as well as to control heat and support the glass cone’s production processes.
As a result, extensive health and safety improvements, including signage, accessibility and lighting, will have to be carried out by the museum to ensure a “safe and free-flowing visitor experience”.
The Stuart crystal factory, which previously stood at the site of the museum, was a major manufacturer of English cut glass until its closure in 2001.
The entire area, which was once considered “the heart of Britain‘s traditional Glass Quarter”, suffered the loss of the four major companies by the late 90s and early 2000s, with only a few glassworks remaining today.