The Pound in Your Pocket Exhibition

This exhibition tackles the topic of inflation. A series of interactive exhibits - large-scale jigsaws, a safe to be cracked, a rollerball game, quizzes and touch-screens - unravel the meaning of inflation, how it is caused, why it matters and how the Bank’s actions affect it.

The centrepiece of the exhibition allows visitors to take the controls of a balloon and charter it on a stable course to simulate the role of the Bank in keeping inflation steady. During the flight a screen plots the course of the balloon as it is pushed up and down by unexpected changes in conditions. Visitors can increase or decrease the air in the balloon to keep it flying at the right height, in the same way that the Bank of England raises or lowers the Bank Rate to keep inflation on target.

Original objects from the Bank’s collections will also be on display to illustrate important events in the history of inflation. These include Roman gold bars illustrating the first period of inflation in Ancient Rome, 18th-century cartoons commenting on inflation and examples of English coinage being debased, with sterling silver coins diminishing in size from the Norman Penny to a Charles II penny.