Museum of London

Located on London Wall and close to the Barbican Centre, the Museum of London documents,explores and tells the ever changing story of the history of London.

This is your story just as much as ours. The collections and the permanent galleries tell the story of London’s development as a city over hundreds of thousands of years: from prehistoric settlements in the Thames Valley, through the founding of “Londinium” by the Roman army, to the great world city that London is today.

How did London come to be such an extraordinary place? Who were the Londoners who lived here in the past? What does the future hold? The Museum explores all these questions and more. It is a truly remarkable story.

The institution is over 30 years old and the twenty-first century has many changes. It cares for more than two million objects in its collections and attracts over 400,000 visitors per year. It holds the largest archaeological archive in Europe.

We aim to keep the stories fresh, our visitor-experience excellent and our creativity buzzing. The Museum of London must reflect the values of London itself, a city of diversity and energy where creativity thrives.

Look out for…

  • The exquisite Fanshawe dress, made from local Spitalfields silk, worn by Ann Fansawe when her father was Lord Mayor of London in 1752-53.
  • Beautifully recreated 18th Century Pleasure Gardens with original period costumes and fabulous Philip Treacy hats.
  • Window shopping along the streets of the Victorian Walk complete with a local pub, barbers and toy shop.
  • The Selfridges lift, installed in Selfridges department store in 1928.
  • The truly magnificent Lord Mayor’s State Coach. Commissioned by Lord Mayor Sir Charles Asgill in 1757, the coach has been used for the annual Lord Mayor’s Show ever since.
  • The London 2012 Cauldron designed by Thomas Heatherwick.

Did you know?…

  • The Museum of London was opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 2 December 1976.
  • This was the first new museum building to open in London since the Second World War and attracted 370,000 visitors in its first six months.
  • The new museum brought together two older museums: the London Museum and the Guildhall Museum.
  • The Museum holds over 25,000 items of clothing, 50,000 objects from the prehistoric period and Roman London, 110,000 objects from modern London (from 18th Century to present) and 1,800 life stories from individual Londoners

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All information is drawn from or provided by the museums themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.