Unprecedented access to thousands of artefacts gathered by the 18th century physician, naturalist and prolific collector Sir Hans Sloane, will be available online to everyone for free, thanks to a multi-million pound digital project led by UCL. Following his death, Sir Hans Sloane's collections formed the basis of the British Museum, Natural History Museum and British Library. The Sloan Lab: Looking back to build future shared collections will bring Sloane's immense collections, ranging from coins to manuscripts and stuffed animals, which are currently held in a variety of locations, together online for the first time. Researchers will work with experts and communities to link up Sloane's collections, put them in context for the 21st century, and give new opportunities to search, explore and engage critically with the UK's cultural heritage online. The Sloane Lab is one of five'Discovery Projects' sharing £14.5m of Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funding to democratise and decolonise the UK's culture and heritage collections.