IT sounds like something from the world of tomorrow, but a new piece of technology is allowing people to see into the Oxford of the past.

The Augmented reality (AR) app from England’s Historic Cities gives visitors to the Bodleian Library the chance to see behind the historic walls and explore the lives of scholars there four centuries ago.

Using a similar AR technique as Pokemon Go, the app could be the first step in a county-wide rollout that will bring Oxfordshire’s past to life on the screens of smartphones.

Tourism service Experience Oxfordshire worked with English Heritage Cities Consortium to secure money for the project through the Discover England Fund.

Experience Oxfordshire chief executive Hayley Beer-Gamage said: “The experts are telling us quite clearly that AR is here to stay and it is the next big thing.

“A lot of what visitors would like to see in Oxford is hidden or has limited access.

“If this is a way of us opening doors and enabling visitors to see more of the wonderful city and heritage that has to be a good thing."

Visitors to the Bodleian can download the app for free and then take a tour around the outside of the building, which lasts for about an hour.

When they hold their phone up to ‘trigger points’ around the building they are guided through the Bodleian’s past by its first librarian, Thomas James.

Through his stories they are given a look into the hidden lives of Oxford scholars through the years, including Oscar Wilde and library founder Sir Thomas Bodley.

Ms Beer-Gamage said: “You do not get to test out the AR until you are in situ, so it is about trying to entice visitors to come and try out out and immerse themselves in the experience."

Experience Oxfordshire is now bidding to extend the project and will find out within six months whether it has been successful.

Bodleian librarian Richard Ovenden said: “The augmented reality experience that this app offers will allow visitors to explore areas of the Bodleian Library that are usually only accessible to scholars and readers.

“We hope it will give people a way to compare their own library experiences to those of Oxford scholars over the past 400 years.”