List of museums in London

This list of museums in London, England contains museums which are defined for this context as institutions (including nonprofit organizations, government entities, and private businesses) that collect and care for objects of cultural, artistic, scientific, or historical interest and make their collections or related exhibits available for public viewing. Also included are non-profit art galleries and university art galleries. Museums that exist only in cyberspace (i.e., virtual museums) are not included.

There are over 240 museums in London. The government publishes visitor figures for its own establishments. The majority of government-funded museums stopped charging admission fees in 2001^[1] and, although this was challenged in 2007,^[2] this has remained the case. Following the removal of admission charges, attendances at London museums increased, with a large percentage of the 42 million annual visitors nationwide.^[3]

The list

To use the sortable table, click on the icons at the top of each column to sort that column in alphabetical order; click again for reverse alphabetical order.

Name	Image	District/Ward	Borough	Region	Type	Summary
2 Willow Road		Hampstead	Camden	North	Historic house	Operated by the National Trust, modernist terrace house designed by Ernő Goldfinger, features a significant collection of 20th century art
7 Hammersmith Terrace		Hammersmith	Hammersmith and Fulham	West	Historic house	website, former home of Emery Walker, friend and mentor to William Morris, house features Arts and Crafts style interior
18 Stafford Terrace		Holland Park	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Historic house	Also known as Linley Sambourne House, home of the Victorian Punch cartoonist Edward Linley Sambourne, features much of his work
491 Gallery		Leytonstone	Waltham Forest	North East	Art	Art and social centre
Age Exchange Reminiscence Centre		Blackheath	Greenwich	South East	History	website, 20th century everyday artefacts and memorabilia, includes 1930s shop, clothing, wartime memorabilia
Alexander Fleming Laboratory Museum		Paddington	Westminster	North	Medical	Located at St Mary's Hospital, London, site and history of Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin, 1928 period laboratory
All Hallows-by-the-Tower Crypt Museum		Tower	City of London	North East	Religious	Saxon-period Anglican church, museum of church's history, including Roman and Saxon artefacts, historic religious artefacts
Anaesthesia Heritage Centre		Fitzrovia	Westminster	North	Medical	History of anaesthesia and the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland
AOP Gallery		Shoreditch	Hackney	North	Art	website, photography gallery operated by the Association of Photographers
Apsley House		Hyde Park Corner	Westminster	North	Historic house	Operated by English Heritage, also known as Wellington Museum, home of The Duke of Wellington, significant collections of paintings, porcelain, sculpture and furniture
Arsenal Football Club Museum		Holloway	Islington	North	Sports	History and memorabilia of the Arsenal F.C.
artsdepot		Finchley	Barnet	North	Art	Arts centre with exhibit gallery
Baden-Powell House Exhibition		South Kensington	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Biographical	History of Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting
Bank of England Museum		City of London	City of London	North East	Numismatic	History of the Bank and its activities, banknotes and coins, books and documents, pictures, furniture, statues, silver
Banqueting House			Westminster	North	Historic house	17th century ornate building used for entertaining, designed by Inigo Jones, only remaining component of the Palace of Whitehall
Barbican Centre		Barbican Estate	City of London	North East	Art	Arts centre and gallery
Barnet Museum		Barnet	Barnet	North	Local	Local history, costumes, domestic items, lace
Benjamin Franklin House			Westminster	North	Historic house	18th century house where Benjamin Franklin lived for 16 years, exhibits on his life, science activities
Ben Uri Gallery, The London Jewish Museum of Art		St John's Wood	Westminster	North	Art	Jewish art
Bethlem Royal Hospital Archives and Museum		Beckenham	Bromley	South East	Medical	Art by patients and historic artefacts
Black Cultural Archives		Brixton	Lambeth	South West	Ethnic	website, Heritage Centre planned to open in 2011
Boston Manor House		Boston Manor	Hounslow	West	Historic house	17th century Jacobean manor house
Brent Museum		Willesden	Brent	West	Local	website, located in the Willesden Green Library Centre, local history and culture, formerly the "Grange Museum of Community History"
British Airways Heritage Centre		Hatton	Hounslow	West	Aviation	website, history and memorabilia of British Airways, including uniforms, aircraft models and pictures, posters and photographs
British Dental Association Museum			Westminster	North	Medical	History of dental care in the United Kingdom
British Library		St Pancras	Camden	North	Library	Changing exhibits of art, history and culture from its collections
British Museum		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Multiple	Art, decorative arts, archaeology, antiquities from Ancient Egypt, Rome, Greece and the Middle East, coins, galleries on Africa, North America, Mexico, Asia
British Music Experience		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Music	History of the British music industry since 1944, located in the O2 Bubble
British Optical Association Museum		Charing Cross	Westminster	North	Medical	History of eye care
British Postal Museum and Archive		Clerkenwell	Islington	North	Philatelic	Postal communications history, stamps, letters, artefacts
British Red Cross Museum and Archives		Moorgate	City of London	North East	Medical	History and memorabilia of the British Red Cross, open by appointment only
Bromley Museum		Orpington	Bromley	South East	Local	website, local history, culture
Bruce Castle Museum		Tottenham	Haringey	North	Local	Local history, culture
Brunei Gallery		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Art	Part of the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University College London, historic and contemporary works from and about Africa and Asia, including photography and culture
Brunel Museum		Rotherhithe	Southwark	South East	Technology	History of the construction of the Thames Tunnel and its designers, Sir Marc Isambard Brunel
Buckingham Palace			Westminster	North	Historic house	Official London residence of the British monarch, public tours of the state rooms, includes Queen's Gallery and Royal Mews
Building Centre		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Design	website, exhibits on architecture and design
Burgh House & Hampstead Museum		Hampstead	Camden	North	Local	Local history, culture, art exhibits
Canada House Gallery		Trafalgar Square	Westminster	North	Art	Canadian historical and contemporary art and artefacts
Carlyle's House		Chelsea	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Historic house	Operated by the National Trust, Victorian period townhouse home of historian and philosopher Thomas Carlyle
Cartoon Museum		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Art	Political cartoons, comic strips and comic books
Centre for Recent Drawing			Tower Hamlets	North East	Art	Contemporary drawings
Charles Dickens Museum		Holborn	Camden	North	Historic house	Mid-19th century period house with original papers, furniture and items relating to author Charles Dickens
Chartered Insurance Institute Museum			City of London	North East	Firefighting
Chelsea Physic Garden		Chelsea	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Medical	Botanical garden with displays on medicinal uses of plants
Chiswick House		Chiswick	Hounslow	West	Historic house	18th century neo-Palladian villa with large collection of art and furniture, gardens
Church Farmhouse Museum		Hendon	Barnet	North	Historic house	Historic kitchen, scullery and dining room, history of the former 17th century farm
Churchill War Rooms		Whitehall	Westminster	North	Multiple	Includes the World War II-era underground Cabinet War Rooms and the Churchill Museum with exhibits about the life of British statesman Winston Churchill
Cinema Museum		Lambeth	Lambeth	South West	Media	History and artefacts of film making
Clarence House		Pall Mall	Westminster	North	Historic house	Official residence of The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry
Clink Prison Museum		Southwark	Southwark	South East	Prison	Site and history of the notorious prison in use from the 12th century to 1780
Clockmakers' Museum		Bassishaw	City of London	North East	Horology	Clocks, watches and other horological items, located in the Guildhall
Couper Collection		Battersea	Wandsworth	South West	Art	Floating art museum on barges
Courtauld Gallery		Strand	Westminster	North	Art	Part of the University of London, located in Somerset House, features Old Masters and Impressionist paintings
Crime Museum			Westminster	North	Law enforcement	History, artefacts and crime memorabilia of Scotland Yard, not open to the public
Crofton Roman Villa		Orpington	Bromley	South East	Archaeology	Remains of a Roman villa
Crossness Pumping Station		Crossness	Bexley	South East	Technology	Victorian sewage pumping station with preserved steam engines
Crystal Palace Museum		Crystal Palace	Bromley	South East	History	website, history and memorabilia of The Crystal Palace
Cubitt Gallery		Finsbury	Islington	North	Art
Cuming Museum		Walworth	Southwark	South East	Local	Local history, culture, small collections of Ancients Egyptian objects
Cutty Sark Museum		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Maritime	Mid-19th century clipper, museum ship currently under restoration
Dalí Universe					Art	Exhibit of works by Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí, formerly located at County Hall, London, currently seeking new location
Danson House		Danson Park	Bexley	South East	Historic house	18th century Georgian house
De Morgan Centre		Wandsworth	Wandsworth	South West	Art	Late 19th and early 20th century ceramics by William De Morgan, and paintings by his wife, the painter Evelyn De Morgan, reopened to the public on Thursday 15th September 2011
Dennis Severs' House		Spitalfields	Tower Hamlets	North East	Living	Enactments of life in the 18th and 19th centuries
Design Museum		Shad Thames	Southwark	South East	Art	Product, industrial, graphic, fashion and architectural design
Dr Johnson's House		City of London	City of London	North East	Historic house	18th century townhouse home of 18th century English writer Samuel Johnson
Down House		Downe	Bromley	South East	Historic house	Operated by English Heritage, home of naturalist Charles Darwin where he wrote "On the Origin of Species"
Dulwich Picture Gallery		Dulwich	Southwark	South East	Art	Collection of European Old Masters, mostly of the 17th and 18th centuries
Eastbury Manor House		Barking	Barking and Dagenham	North East	Historic house	Owned by the National Trust, 16th century Tudor gentry house, local history displays
Eltham Palace		Eltham	Greenwich	South East	Historic house	Operated by English Heritage, 1930s Art Deco house with medieval Great Hall
Estorick Collection of Modern Italian Art		Canonbury	Islington	North	Art	Modern Italian art
Fan Museum		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Fashion	Art and craft of the fan
Fashion and Textile Museum		Bermondsey	Southwark	South East	Fashion	Fashions, textiles and jewellery, both historic and contemporary
Fenton House		Hampstead	Camden	North	Historic house	Operated by the National Trust, 17th century merchant's house, features collections of early keyboard instruments, paintings, porcelain, needlework pictures and Georgian furniture
Firepower: The Royal Artillery Museum		Woolwich	Greenwich	South East	Military	History and artefacts of the Royal Regiment of Artillery and the Royal Arsenal, collections of historic and modern weapons
Florence Nightingale Museum		Lambeth	Lambeth	South West	Medical	Life and nursing work of Florence Nightingale
Forty Hall Museum		Forty Hill	Enfield	North	Multiple	Local history, 17th and 18th century ceramics and pottery, 19th and 20th century china, glassware
Foundling Museum		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Multiple	History of the Foundling Hospital, Britain's first home for abandoned children, art by many of Britain's most prominent 18th century artists, 18th century period rooms, room on composer George Frideric Handel and his connection to the hospital
Freud Museum		Hampstead	Camden	North	Historic house	Home of Dr. Sigmund Freud, features his study, exhibits on his life and works, collection of Ancient Egyptian artifacts, contemporary art and Freud-themed exhibitions
Fulham Palace		Fulham	Hammersmith and Fulham	West	Historic house	Medieval former residence of the Bishop of London, also art gallery
Galton Collection		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Medical	Part of the University College London, open by appointment only, scientific instruments, papers, and personal memorabilia of Sir Francis Galton
Garden Museum		Lambeth	Lambeth	South West	Gardening	Tools and artefacts related to ornamental gardening
Garrick's Temple		Hampton	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Biographical	website, 18th century folly built by actor David Garrick to celebrate the genius of William Shakespeare, includes display on Garrick's life and acting career
Geffrye Museum		Shoreditch	Hackney	North	Art and historic house	Changing style of the English domestic interior in a series of period rooms from 1600 to the present day. Also historic alms house.
Golden Hind		Bankside	Southwark	South East	Maritime	Replica museum ship of the 16th century galleon used by Sir Francis Drake
Grant Museum of Zoology		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Natural history	website, part of the University College London, skeletons, mounted animals and specimens preserved in fluid
Museum of Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Medical	Open by appointment, history of the hospital, collection of rare & multi-national book editions of Peter Pan
Greenwich Heritage Centre		Woolwich	Greenwich	South East	Local	Local history, culture, Royal Arsenal and the Royal Woolwich Dockyard
Greenwich Visitor Centre		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	History	Also known as Discover Greenwich Visitor Centre, history of the World Heritage Site, its builders and buildings, maritime heritage, local history
Guards' Museum			Westminster	North	Military	History, artefacts and memorabilia of the five regiments of Foot Guards: the Grenadier Guards, Coldstream Guards, Scots Guards, Irish Guards, and Welsh Guards
Guildhall Art Gallery		Bassishaw	City of London	North East	Art	Located in the Guildhall, collection includes art and cultural artefacts about London, Victorian-era works, remains of a Roman amphitheatre in the basement
Gunnersbury Park Museum		Acton	Hounslow	West	Local	Local history of Hounslow and Ealing boroughs, archaeology, costume, fine art, ceramics, also Edwardian era kitchen rooms
Hackney Museum		Hackney	Hackney	North	Local	website, local history, culture
Hall Place		Crayford	Bexley	South East	Historic house	16th & 17th century former stately home, exhibits from the Bexley Museum's collections including art, social history, natural history, geology, archaeology, Ancient Egypt, costumes, furniture
Ham House		Ham	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Historic house	Operated by the National Trust, 17th century grand house, fine interiors and historic gardens, collections of textiles and furniture
Hampton Court Palace		Hampton	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Historic house	Former royal palace, King Henry VIII exhibition, Tudor kitchen, Tudor-period living history programs, gardens, maze
Handel House Museum		Mayfair	Westminster	North	Historic house	18th century period townhouse, home of baroque composer George Frideric Handel
Harrow Museum		Headstone	Harrow	West	Local	Local history, industry, archaeology
Hayward Gallery		Southbank	Lambeth	South West	Art	Part of the Southbank Centre, contemporary art
HMS Belfast		Southwark	Southwark	South East	Maritime	Operated by the Imperial War Museum, originally a Royal Navy light cruiser and served during the Second World War and Korean War
Hogarth's House		Chiswick	Hounslow	West	Historic house	Home of the 18th century English artist William Hogarth
Honeywood Museum		Carshalton	Sutton	South West	Local	website, 17th century house with details from different eras of ownership, local history exhibits
Honourable Artillery Company Museum		Finsbury	Islington	North	Military	Regimental artefacts and memorabilia
Horniman Museum		Forest Hill	Lewisham	South East	Multiple	Musical instruments, art, natural history, anthropology, African arts and culture, aquarium, gardens
Household Cavalry Museum		Horse Guards Parade	Westminster	North	Military	website Regimental artefacts and memorabilia
House Mill		Bromley-by-Bow	Newham	North East	Mill	18th-19th century tidal mill
Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons		Lincoln's Inn Fields	Westminster	North	Medical	Hunterian Collection of preserved anatomical specimens, history, artefacts and developments in surgery
ICANDO		Victoria	Westminster	North	Scouting	website, formerly the Girl Guide Heritage Centre, exhibits and activities about Girl Guides
Imperial War Museum London		Southwark	Southwark	South East	Military	Warfare in the 20th and 21st centuries
Inns of Court and City Yeomanry Museum		Lincoln's Inn	Westminster	North	Military	information, regimental history and artefacts of the Inns of Court and City Yeomanry
Institute of Archaeology Collections		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Archaeology	website, part of the University College London, open by appointment only, prehistoric ceramics and stone artefacts, Classical Greek and Roman ceramics
Institute of Contemporary Arts		The Mall	Westminster	North	Art	Multi-disciplinary arts centre with exhibit galleries
Island History Trust		Isle of Dogs	Tower Hamlets	North East	Local	Local history
Islington Museum		Finsbury	Islington	North	Local	Local history
Jewel Tower			Westminster	North	History	Operated by English Heritage, one of only two surviving sections of the medieval royal Palace of Westminster, includes an exhibition on the history of Parliament and the building
Jewish Military Museum		Hendon	Barnet	North	Military	website, Jewish military contributions in Britain
Jewish Museum London		Camden Town	Camden	North	Ethnic	Jewish culture, heritage and traditions in Britain, ceremonial art collection
Keats House		Hampstead	Camden	North	Historic house	Early 19th century home of Romantic poet John Keats
Kelmscott House Museum		Hammersmith	Hammersmith and Fulham	West	Art	London home of William Morris, exhibits of his designs
Kennel Club Art Gallery			Westminster	North	Art	Exhibits and collection of dog paintings, open by appointment
Kensington Palace		Kensington Gardens	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Historic house	Royal residence
Kenwood House		Hampstead	Camden	North	Historic house	Operated by English Heritage, 17th century former stately home, interiors by Robert Adam, features collection of Old Master paintings
Kew Bridge Steam Museum		Brentford	Hounslow	West	Technology	Water supply technology and a collection of water pumping steam engines, also operating narrow gauge railway
Kew Palace		Kew	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Historic house	Former royal palace located within the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Kew Transport Museum		Richmond	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Transportation	information
Kingston Museum		Kingston upon Thames	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Local	website, local history, Eadweard Muybridge gallery of photographs, exhibits of art, photography, culture
Kirkaldy Testing Museum		Southwark	Southwark	South East	Technology	Materials testing machines used by engineer David Kirkaldy
L-13 Light Industrial Workshop		Clerkenwell	Islington	North	Art	Contemporary art space
Lambeth Palace Library		Lambeth	Lambeth	South West	Library	Exhibits from its collections of art, architecture, history
Landmark Arts Centre		Teddington	Richmond	West	Art	website, arts centre with visual art gallery
Leighton House Museum		Holland Park	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Art	Victorian house of painter Frederic, Lord Leighton, features paintings, sculpture, Middle Eastern tiles
Library and Museum of Freemasonry		Holborn	Camden	North	Masonic	Library, artefacts and regalia of Freemasonry
Little Holland House		Carshalton	Sutton	South West	Historic house	Arts and Crafts home of the artist Frank Dickinson (1874–1961) with interior influenced by John Ruskin and William Morris
London Canal Museum		Kings Cross	Islington	North	Transportation	History of London's canals
London Film Museum		Lambeth	Lambeth	South West	Media	Props, costumes, sets and artefacts from British films, history of moviemaking
London Fire Brigade Museum		Southwark	Southwark	South East	Firefighting	Open by appointment only, history of the London Fire Brigade, equipment, apparatus
London Motorcycle Museum		Greenford	Ealing	West	Transportation	Over 150 classic and British motorcycles
London Sewing Machine Museum		Wimbledon	Merton	South West	Technology	website, collection of sewing machines
London Transport Museum		Covent Garden	Westminster	North	Transportation	Public transportation including the railway, underground, buses, memorabilia
Madame Tussaud's London			Westminster	North	Wax
Magic Circle Museum			Camden	North	Magic	Magic tricks, props, posters, artefacts, open by appointment
Mansion House		City of London	City of London	North East	Historic house	Guided tours of the public rooms of the official residence of the Lord Mayor of the City of London, includes city regalia, 17th Century Dutch and Flemish paintings, gold and silver plate collections
Marble Hill House		Richmond	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Historic house	Operated by English Heritage, 18th century Palladian villa with Georgian interior
Markfield Beam Engine and Museum		Tottenham	Haringey	North	Technology	Victorian 100 horsepower beam pumping engine
MCC Museum		St John's Wood	Westminster	North	Sports	History and memorabilia of cricketing, located at Lord's Cricket Ground
Mall Galleries		Trafalgar Square	Westminster	North	Art	Gallery exhibits of the Federation of British Artists
Merton Heritage Centre		Morden	Merton	South West	Local	website, local history
Michael Faraday Museum		Mayfair	Westminster	North	Science	Located at the Royal Institution, reconstruction of scientist Michael Faraday's 19th century laboratory
MOCA, London		Peckham Rye	Southwark	South East	Contemporary Art	Museum dedicated to Contemporary Art of varied media. Curated by Michael Petry
Morley Gallery		South Bank	Lambeth	South West	Art	Part of Morley College, exhibitions include painting, printmaking, sculpture, photography, ceramics, textiles, installations, digital and sound art
Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising		Notting Hill	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Media	Advertising, packaging and brand memorabilia and artefacts, including domestic products, packaging, posters, toys and games
Museum of Croydon		Croydon	Croydon	South West	Local	Local history, culture, social history
Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture			Enfield	North	Art	19th and 20th century decorative arts for the home including textiles and wallpaper, part of Middlesex University
Museum of Immigration and Diversity		Spitalfields	Tower Hamlets	North East	History	Immigration and diversity in Britain, open on a limited basis
Museum of London		Barbican Estate	City of London	North East	History	City's history, culture, archaeology
Museum of London Docklands		Isle of Dogs	Tower Hamlets	North East	Maritime	Area maritime, river and local history
Museum of Richmond		Richmond	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Local	website, local history, culture
Museum of the Order of St John		Clerkenwell	Islington	North	Religious	History of the Order of St John and its medical care in the community
Musical Museum		Brentford	Hounslow	West	Music	Collection of music boxes and automatic instruments
National Army Museum		Chelsea	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Military	History and artefacts of the British Army
National Gallery		Trafalgar Square	Westminster	North	Art	National collection of Western European painting from the 13th century to 1900
National Maritime Museum		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Maritime	History of Britain at sea, includes maritime art, ship models and plans, scientific and navigational instruments, instruments for time-keeping and astronomy. Incorporates Greenwich Observatory and the Queen's House.
National Portrait Gallery		Trafalgar Square	Westminster	North	Art	Portraits of historically important and famous British people
Natural History Museum		South Kensington	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Natural history	Also includes the Geological Museum, collections focus is botany, entomology, mineralogy, palaeontology and zoology.
The Newsroom - Guardian and Observer Archive and Visitor Centre		Kings Cross	Islington	North	Media	Exhibitions from its collections
Nonsuch Mansion		Cheam	Sutton	South West	Historic house
Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret		Southwark	Southwark	South East	Medical	19th century operating theatre, herb garret and museum of surgery
Old Royal Naval College		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Historic site
Old Speech Room Gallery and Museum, Harrow School		Harrow	Harrow	West	Art	Egyptian and Greek antiquities, English watercolours, Modern British paintings, sculpture, printed books and natural history
Orleans House Gallery		Twickenham	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Art	website, municipal art gallery, also the Stables Gallery
Osterley Park and House		Isleworth	Hounslow	West	Historic house	Operated by the National Trust, late 18th century palace designed by Robert Adam, ornate interiors, gardens
Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Archaeology	Artifacts from Ancient Egypt, part of the University College London
Photographers' Gallery		Soho	Westminster	North	Art	Photography
Pitzhanger Manor		Ealing	Ealing	West	Historic house	Also known as PM Gallery and House, manor designed by architect John Soane with PM Gallery for contemporary art, tours and information about the house
Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum		South Kensington	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Military	Contributions of the Polish Armed Forces in the West in World War II
Pollock's Toy Museum			Camden	North	Toy	Toys, games, dolls, puppets, folk toys
Prince Henry's Room			City of London	North East	Historic house	17th century Jacobean townhouse, exhibit on diarist Samuel Pepys
Pumphouse Educational Museum		Rotherhithe	Southwark	South East	Local	website, includes the Rotherhithe Heritage Museum with local history and culture exhibits, and the Lavender Pond & Nature Park
Richard Green		New Bond Street	Westminster	West	Art	website Fine Art London
Pushkin House		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Art	Russian art and culture
Queen Charlotte's Cottage		Kew	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Historic house	Located within the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 18th century rustic country retreat built for Queen Charlotte
Queen Elizabeth’s Hunting Lodge		Chingford	Waltham Forest	North East	Historic house	website, Tudor hunting lodge
Queen's Gallery			Westminster	North	Art	Exhibitions of items from the Royal Collection, located at Buckingham Palace
Queen's House		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Art	Marine art gallery of the National Maritime Museum
Ragged School Museum			Tower Hamlets	North East	Education	History of the Victorian-era charity schools
Ranger's House (Wernher Collection)		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Art	Operated by English Heritage, Georgian villa with fine and decorative art collection, including silver and jewels, paintings and porcelain
Red House		Bexleyheath	Bexley	South East	Historic house	Operated by the National Trust, 19th century house commissioned, created and lived in by William Morris, founder of the Arts and Crafts Movement
Red Mansion Foundation		Portland Place	Westminster	North	Art	Gallery exhibits of contemporary Chinese art
Redbridge Museum		Ilford	Redbridge	North East	Local	website, local history, culture, located on the second floor of Ilford Central Library
Riesco Gallery		Croydon	Croydon	South West	Art	Municipal art gallery with a collection of Chinese pottery and ceramics
Ripley's Believe It or Not!		Piccadilly Circus	Westminster	North	Amusement
Riverside Gallery		Richmond	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Art	website, municipal art gallery
Rose Theatre Exhibition		Bankside	Southwark	South East	Archaeology	Excavations of an Elizabethan theatre
Royal Academy of Arts		Piccadilly	Westminster	North	Art	Located in Burlington House
Royal Academy of Music Museum		Regent's Park	Westminster	North	Music	Also known as York Gate Collections, includes musical instruments, archives, manuscripts and images
Royal Air Force Museum		Colindale	Barnet	North	Aviation	History of aviation and the British Royal Air Force
Royal Armouries, Tower of London		Tower Hill	Tower Hamlets	North East	Military	Arms and armour dating from the Middle Ages onwards
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew		Kew	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Multiple	Includes Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art, Marianne North Gallery, exhibits on plants and conservation
Royal College of Music Archives and Museum of Instruments		South Kensington	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Music	Musical instruments and accessories
Royal College of Physicians Museum		Regent's Park	Camden	North	Medical	Portraits, silver, medical instruments and artefacts
Royal Fusiliers Museum		Tower Hill	Tower Hamlets	North East	Military	website, regimental history, uniforms, regalia, medals, weapons and memorabilia of the Royal Fusiliers, located at the Tower of London
Royal Hospital Chelsea Museum		Chelsea	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Military	Military artefacts and memorabilia, items related to The Duke of Wellington
Royal Institute of British Architects Collections		Marylebone	Westminster	North	Art	Exhibits of art, drawings, photographs about architecture from its collections
Royal London Hospital Archives and Museum		Whitechapel	Tower Hamlets	North East	Medical	History of the hospital and medical care in the East End
Royal Mews			Westminster	North	Transportation	The Queen's stables, features State vehicles including horse-drawn carriages and motor cars, and the Gold State Coach
Royal Military School of Music Museum		Twickenham	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Music	Open by appointment, musical instruments, music, documents, prints, manuscripts, paintings and uniforms showing the history of military music
Royal Observatory, Greenwich		Greenwich	Greenwich	South East	Horology	Part of the National Maritime Museum, features astronomical and navigational tools, a planetarium
Royal Pharmaceutical Society Museum		Lambeth	Lambeth	South West	Medical	British pharmacy history, medicines and artefacts
St Bartholomew's Hospital Museum		Smithfield	City of London	North East	Medical	History of the hospital and its work, historic surgical instruments, sculpture, medieval archives, works of art including paintings by William Hogarth
St Paul's Cathedral		Ludgate Hill	City of London	North East	Religious	Anglican cathedral with religious art, sculpture, architecture, tombs, decorative arts
Saatchi Gallery		Chelsea	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Art	Contemporary art
Science Museum		South Kensington	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Science	National museum of science and technology, transportation, medicine, steam engines
Shakespeare’s Globe Exhibition		Southwark	Southwark	South East	Theatre	Backstage tours and history of the theatre, costumes, music, theatrical effects, recreation of a 17th century printing press
Sherlock Holmes Museum		Regent's Park	Westminster	North	Biographical	Dedicated to the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes
Shirley Windmill		Shirley	Croydon	South West	Mill	Restored mid-19th century tower windmill
Showroom Gallery			Tower Hamlets	North East	Art	Contemporary art
Sir John Soane's Museum		Holborn	Westminster	North	Art	Fine art, architecture, antiquities, sculpture
Smythson Stationery Museum			Westminster	North		information, small museum at back of the Smythson store with stationery products, old Christmas cards, wartime telegrams
Somerset House		Strand	Westminster	North	Art	Arts centre with gallery and Courtauld Gallery
Soseki Museum in London		Clapham	City of London	North East	Historic house	information, information, London home of Japanese author Natsume Sōseki
South London Gallery		Camberwell	Southwark	South East	Art	Contemporary art
Southall Railway Centre		Southall	Ealing	West	Transportation	Vintage steam and diesel locomotives and rolling stock
Southside House		Wimbledon	Merton	South West	Historic house	17th century period house
Spencer House		St James's	Westminster	North	Historic house	18th century mansion with restored state rooms and garden
The Stephens Collection		Finchley	Barnet	North	Biographical	website, life of Dr. Henry Stephens, inventor of an indelible blue-black ink, and his son Henry Charles Stephens, their ink company and local history
Strawberry Hill		Twickenham	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Historic house	Gothic villa home of Horace Walpole
Sutton House		Hackney	Hackney	North	Historic house	Operated by the National Trust, 16th century Tudor house
Syon House		Brentford	Hounslow	West	Historic house	Family residence of the Duke of Northumberland, 18th century house with interior by Robert Adam, collections of paintings and furniture, gardens, park
Tate Britain		Millbank	Westminster	North	Art	National collection of historical and contemporary British art
Tate Modern		Bankside	Southwark	South East	Art	National collection of modern art
Tower Bridge			Tower Hamlets	North East	Technology	Steam engines, workings of the bridge
Tower of London		Tower Hill	Tower Hamlets	North East	Multiple	Historic fortress, prison and former royal residence, includes the Royal Armouries, Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom, regimental museum of the Royal Fusiliers
Twinings Museum		Strand	Westminster	North	Food	History of Twinings, tea caddies and tea history
Twickenham Museum		Twickenham	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Local	website, local history
Type Museum		Brixton	Lambeth	South West	Media	Collection of typesetting equipment and artefacts, currently not open to the public
University College London Art Collections		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Art	website, part of the University College London, exhibits in the Strang Print Room (South Cloisters)
University College London Collections		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Multiple	website, open by appointment only, part of the University College London, research collections in archaeology, ethnography, science
University College London Geology Collections		Bloomsbury	Camden	North	Natural history	website, part of the University College London, rocks, minerals, fossils on display in the Rock Room, limited opening hours
Valence House Museum		Dagenham	Barking and Dagenham	North East	Local	Local history, archeology, maritime and fishing industry, art
Valentines Mansion		Ilford	Redbridge	North East	Historic house	Country house with recreated Victorian kitchen and Georgian rooms, contemporary art exhibits, 18th century gardens
Vestry House Museum		Walthamstow	Waltham Forest	North East	Local	Local history, culture
Victoria and Albert Museum		South Kensington	Kensington and Chelsea	West	Multiple	National collection of applied arts, includes ceramics, glass, textiles, costumes, silver, ironwork, jewellery, furniture, medieval objects, sculpture, prints and printmaking, drawings and photographs, theatre and performing arts, Asian art and decorative arts, architecture
V&A Museum of Childhood		Bethnal Green	Tower Hamlets	North East	Toy	Toys, dolls, children's playtime and lives
Wallace Collection		Marylebone	Westminster	North	Art	Old masters and decorative arts
Walthamstow Pump House Museum		Walthamstow	Waltham Forest	North East	Transportation	Currently closed, will become the Lea Valley Experience, pioneering achievements in road, rail, air and sea transport in the River Lea valley from the early 19th century
Wandle Industrial Museum		Mitcham	Merton	South West	Industry	website, industries along the River Wandle
Wandsworth Museum		Wandsworth	Wandsworth	South West	Local	Local history
Wellcome Collection			Camden	North	Medical	Medical artefacts and original artworks exploring 'ideas about the connections between medicine, life and art', exhibits from the collections of the Wellcome Library
Wellington Arch			Westminster	North	History	Triumphal arch with exhibits about its history
Wesley's Chapel, Museum of Methodism and John Wesley's House			Islington	North	Religious	History of Methodism from its founding by John Wesley to the present
West Ham United Museum		Upton Park	Newham	North East	Sports	History and memorabilia of West Ham United
Westminster Abbey Museum		Westminster	Westminster	North	Religious	Royal and other funeral effigies, religious artefacts
Westminster Dragoons Museum		Fulham	Hammersmith and Fulham	West	Military	Regimental artefacts, regalia and memorabilia
White Lodge Museum and Ballet Resource Centre		Richmond	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Ballet	History of the Royal Ballet School, daily life of its students, history and development of Classical ballet, history of White Lodge, visits by appointment
Whitechapel Gallery		Whitechapel	Tower Hamlets	North East	Art	Contemporary art
Whitehall		Cheam	Sutton	South West	Historic house	Tudor house with elements from different eras
Whitewebbs Museum of Transport		Enfield	Enfield	North	Transportation	website, cars, trucks, motorcycles, model railway
William Morris Gallery		Walthamstow	Waltham Forest	North East	Art	Arts and Crafts movement furniture, textiles, ceramics and glass
Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum		Wimbledon	Merton	South West	Sports	History of tennis
Wimbledon Society Museum of Local History		Wimbledon	Merton	South West	Local	website, local history, culture
Wimbledon Windmill Museum		Wimbledon	Merton	South West	Mill	19th century windmill, exhibits on its history and other windmills
Winston Churchill's Britain At War Experience			Tower Hamlets	North East	History	Located in Tower Bridge, recreation of life in London during The Blitz
Women's Library			Tower Hamlets	North East	Library	Part of London Metropolitan University, exhibits on women's history, culture and issues from its collections
World Rugby Museum		Twickenham	Richmond upon Thames	South West	Sports	Rugby union history and the England national rugby union team, players, memorabilia, history of Twickenham Stadium

Defunct museums

• Bethnal Green Museum, now known as the V&A Museum of Childhood
• Bramah Tea and Coffee Museum
• Egyptian Hall
• Erith Museum^[4]
• Gilbert Collection, now part of the Victoria and Albert Museum
• Hermitage Rooms
• Holophusikon
• Jewish Museum (Finchley)
• Livesey Museum for Children
• London Gas Museum
• London Museum, collections now at the Museum of London
• Musaeum Tradescantianum
• Museum of Mankind
• Museum of the Moving Image (London)
• North Woolwich Old Station Museum
• Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art
• Rotunda (Woolwich)
• Theatre Museum

Visitor figures

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) publishes monthly visitor figures [1] for the public sector museums and galleries which it sponsors, which include most of the leading museums in London. The most popular London museum in the private sector is The Sherlock Holmes Museum. The totals of the financial year to 31 March 2008 were as follows:

• Tate Modern and Tate Britain – (see note) 6,769,949
• British Museum – 6,037,930
• National Gallery – 3,914,000
• Natural History Museum – 3,613,953
• Science Museum – 2,711,680
• Victoria and Albert Museum – 2,280,759
• National Maritime Museum – 1,765,814
• National Portrait Gallery – 1,645,680
• Imperial War Museum – 759,571
• Horniman Museum – 477,894
• Wallace Collection – 335,349
• V&A Museum of Childhood – 332,844
• Museum of London – 316,992
• Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms – 306,600
• HMS Belfast – 258,941
• Museum of London Docklands – 100,834
• Sir John Soane's Museum – 93,427
• Geffrye Museum – 80,352
• Theatre Museum – 6,852 (closed permanently in August 2007)

Note: Tate Modern and Tate Britain are on separate sites two miles apart, but the DCMS only publishes a single combined visitor figure for them. Tate Modern is widely reported to attract the more visitors of the two, but it is not clear whether it received more visitors than the British Museum on its own.

See also

• Museum Mile, London
• The London Museums of Health & Medicine
• Category:Visitor attractions in London

References

1. ^ Bishop, Tom (29 April 2004). [news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/3667641.stm "Museums count cost of going free"]. BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/3667641.stm. Retrieved 26 March 2009. 
2. ^ Russell, Ben (18 June 2007). "Why museums must stay free". The Independent online. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/why-museums-must-stay-free-453620.html. Retrieved 26 March 2009. 
3. ^ Lister, David (18 June 2007). "Why recall for a rethink on Labours one cultural success". The Independent online. http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/david-lister/david-lister-why-call-for-a-rethink-on-labours-one-cultural-success-453607.html. Retrieved 26 March 2009. 
4. ^ http://www.erithmuseum.org.uk/ Erith Museum, Museum Now Closed, accessed 06-03-10

External links

• London's best unsung museums - Time Out London