UK Museums: The Museum of London
Museum of London
The Museum of London near the Barbican Centre in London is a huge, free to enter museum devoted to the history and culture of the UK's capital city from pre-historic times to the present day.
The museum has something on offer for all members of the family and is particularly aimed at school children and young adults.
Parts of the original Roman London Wall are also just outside the museum.
The museum will be moving in 2024 to a new site in West Smithfield. The present structure will be demolished and replaced by a concert hall to house the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
History
The Museum of London began life in 1976 with its first exhibits coming from the former Guildhall Museum in The City and the London Museum, which used to be located in Kensington Palace. It was laid it in chronological fashion charting the history of the city from prehistoric times to the present.
Revamped in 2010, the redesign added new galleries and tells the story of London and its people from the Great Fire of 1666 to the present day.
Collections
The museum has a collection of more than 6 million objects making it the largest collection of urban history in the world.
Inside are a number of permanent galleries.
London Before London looks at the history of the Thames Valley area from 450,000 BC until the beginning of the Roman city of Londinium around AD 50. Visitors can see human and animal bones, pottery and weapons from the period.
Roman London focuses on the Roman city of Londinium from AD 50 to 410. It was the largest and most important settlement in the Roman province of Britannia. On display are Roman coins, inscriptions, mosaics, stone figures, tiles and tombstones.
The Medieval London gallery looks at the city from the fall of the Roman Empire to the reign of Elizabeth I. It is packed with household articles, ornaments, paintings, religious items and weapons from the period.
War, Plague & Fire charts the period from the 1550s to the 1660s when the city was wracked by the Civil War and then the Great Fire of London. Relive the period through original ceramics, maps and paintings as well as scale models. Oliver Cromwell's death mask can also be seen.
The Expanding City gallery shows London's rise from the 1660s to the 1850s. In this time it became one of the world's largest urban centers. Marvel at the Wellclose Square debtors' cell and a recreation of the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. Also on display are Lord Nelson's sword and costumes from the period.
People's City shows London from the 1850s to 1940s. There's a taxi from the period, a lift from Selfridges department store on Oxford Street from 1928 and an interactive Blitz experience. In addition there are exhibits on the Suffragettes and Victorian life.
The World City gallery shows the changes in society from the 1950s to the present. Fashion, diversity and protests such as the Brixton riots are to the fore. The Lord Mayor's Coach is also in this section.
The London 2012 Olympic Cauldron by designer Thomas Hetherwick is the main attraction of this gallery. Hetherwick Studio also produced another icon of the city, the new Routemaster bus. The museum also has exhibits on the three Olympic Games to have taken place in London so far in 1908, 1948 and 2012.
Cafe
The Ellipse Cafe is just outside the London 2012 Olympic Cauldron.
Museum of London Docklands
The Museum of London Docklands is housed in a 19th-century Grade I listed warehouse near Canary Wharf on the Isle of Dogs. It focuses on the history of London as a port from a Roman trading station to, at one time in its history, the world's biggest port. There are also exhibits on the city's role in the slave trade - London, Sugar & Slavery and City & River - the history of the port from 1800-1840. New Port, New City charts the decline and regeneration of the area.
No1 Warehouse
West India Quay
London E14 4AL
Tel: 020 7001 9844
Access - Canary Wharf tube station; West India Quay DLR; Buses #D3, #D7, #D8, #277, #D6, #15, #115, and #135; River Boat Canary Wharf Pier with connections to Embankment, London Eye, Bankside, London Bridge and Greenwich.
Access - Getting to the Museum
150 London Wall
Barbican
EC2Y 5HN
Tel: 020 7001 9844
www: museumoflondon.org.uk
Hours: Open 10 am-5 pm, Wednesday-Sunday, and closed to the public on Monday and Tuesday. During school holidays the museum is open for a full week. Check the website above for full details.
Entry is free but there may be charges for temporary and special exhibitions.
The nearest underground stations to the Museum of London are Barbican St Paul's (both a 5-minute walk away). Liverpool Street, Farringdon and Cannon Street are the nearest mainline stations.
Many London buses pass near the museum including numbers #4, #8, #25, #56, #100, #172, #242, #388, and #521.
Other places of interest nearby in this area of London include St Paul's Cathedral.
South of the River Thames near St. Paul's are Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, Tate Modern and the London Eye.
Museums & Gardens in Britain
Gallery
Hotels in London
Book Hotels in London - Booking.com
Find Luxury Hotels in London - Booking.com
Budget Hotels in London - Booking.com
Find Hotels in England - Booking.com