British Museum facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
British Museum

Aerial view of the British Museum
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Established	7 June 1753; 272 years ago (1753-06-07)
Location	Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG, England
Collection size	Approx. 8 million objects
Visitors	5,820,860 (2023) (up 42% from 2022) Ranked first nationally
Public transit access	Tottenham Court Road Goodge Street; Holborn; Russell Square
Area	807,000 sq ft (75,000 m2) in 94 galleries

The British Museum is a famous public museum in Bloomsbury, London. It is all about human history, art, and culture. The museum has a huge collection of about eight million items. This makes it the largest collection in the world! It tells the story of human culture from the very beginning until today. The British Museum was the first national museum open to everyone. It covered all kinds of knowledge.

In 2023, over 5.8 million people visited the museum. This was a big increase from the year before. It was the most popular visitor spot in the United Kingdom.

The museum started in 1753. It was mostly based on the collections of a doctor and scientist named Sir Hans Sloane. It first opened its doors in 1759. This was at Montagu House, where the museum stands today. Over the next 250 years, the museum grew a lot. This was partly because of British exploration around the world. It also led to new museums being created, like the Natural History Museum in 1881. Some of its most famous items, like the Greek Elgin Marbles and the Egyptian Rosetta Stone, are part of ongoing discussions about who owns them.

In 1973, the library part of the British Museum became a separate organization called the British Library. However, the British Museum still hosted the library in the same building until 1997. The museum is supported by the government. Like other national museums in the UK, it is free to enter. You only pay for special temporary exhibitions.

History of the British Museum

How the Museum Started

The British Museum was created to be a "universal museum." This means it would collect things from all over the world. Its beginning comes from the will of Sir Hans Sloane. He was a doctor and scientist from London. During his life, Sloane collected many interesting objects. He had about 71,000 items! These included 40,000 books, 7,000 handwritten papers, and many natural history items. He also had ancient objects from places like Egypt and Greece. Sloane wanted his collection to stay together after he died. So, he offered it to King George II for the nation. He asked for £20,000 for it.

On June 7, 1753, King George II agreed to the plan. This led to a law that created the British Museum. This law also added two other large libraries to Sloane's collection. These were the Cottonian Library and the Harleian Library. In 1757, the "Old Royal Library" was added too. These first four collections included many very important books. For example, the Lindisfarne Gospels and the only surviving copy of Beowulf.

The British Museum was a new kind of museum. It belonged to the nation, not a church or a king. It was open to everyone for free. It aimed to collect everything from all fields of knowledge.

Early Days: Montagu House (1759-1778)

The museum's leaders chose a large 17th-century house called Montagu House as its home. They bought it for £20,000. The first exhibition rooms and a study room for scholars opened on January 15, 1759. At first, the biggest parts of the collection were books and natural history items.

Over time, the museum received more gifts. These included a collection of Greek vases from Sir William Hamilton. This was the museum's first major collection of ancient art.

Growing Collections (1778-1825)

From 1778, visitors were amazed by objects from the South Seas. These were brought back by explorers like Captain James Cook. These items gave people a look at lands they had never known about. By 1800, Montagu House was getting too crowded. It was clear that a bigger building was needed.

After a battle in Egypt in 1801, the British Museum gained many Egyptian sculptures. In 1802, King George III gave the museum the Rosetta Stone. This stone was very important because it helped people understand ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. More Egyptian items came from Henry Salt, a British official in Egypt.

In 1805, the museum got the Charles Towneley collection of Roman sculptures. In 1806, Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin, brought a large collection of marble sculptures from the Parthenon in Athens to the UK. These famous artworks were bought by the museum in 1816.

In 1822, King George III's personal library, the King's Library, was given to the museum. This added 65,000 books! Architect Sir Robert Smirke was asked to design a new, larger building. The old Montagu House was torn down. Work on the new East Wing, which would hold the King's Library, began in 1823 and finished in 1831.

Building the Grand Museum (1825-1850)

As Sir Robert Smirke's grand new building slowly went up, the museum was a big construction site. The King's Library opened in 1827. It was called one of the most beautiful rooms in London.

In 1840, the museum started its first overseas digs. Charles Fellows led an expedition to Xanthos in Turkey. They found remains of ancient tombs. In 1857, Charles Newton found the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In the 1840s and 1850s, the museum also supported digs in Assyria. These digs found the great library of Ashurbanipal. This library had thousands of cuneiform clay tablets. These tablets helped people learn a lot about ancient Assyria.

Sir Thomas Grenville gave his library of over 20,000 books to the museum in 1846. These books filled a new room in the museum.

Expanding and Changing (1850-1875)

The main courtyard of the museum was finished in 1852. But the collections kept growing so fast! New galleries were built for Assyrian sculptures. The famous Round Reading Room, designed by Sydney Smirke, opened in 1857. It had space for a million books. Because of the lack of space, the natural history collections were moved to a new building. This building later became the Natural History Museum.

A librarian named Anthony Panizzi helped the British Museum Library grow a lot. It became one of the largest libraries in the world.

In 1851, Augustus Wollaston Franks joined the museum staff. He helped the museum start collecting British and European medieval items. He also expanded collections from Asia and other cultures. The museum also bought a large collection of ancient items from the Duke of Blacas in 1867. Digs continued, and John Turtle Wood found parts of the Temple of Artemis at Ephesos. This was another of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

New Century, New Building (1900-1925)

By the late 1800s, the museum's building was too small for its growing collections. In 1895, the museum bought 69 houses around its building. The plan was to tear them down and build new galleries. The first part of this plan was the North Wing, which started in 1906.

The collections kept growing. Explorers like Emil Torday collected in Central Africa. Aurel Stein explored Central Asia. J. Pierpont Morgan, a collector, gave many objects to the museum. This included a collection of prehistoric items from Europe.

During World War I, some objects were moved to safe places to protect them from bombs. After the war, a conservation lab was set up in 1920. This lab helps to repair and protect the museum's objects. In 1923, the British Museum had over one million visitors!

Challenges and Rebuilding (1925-1950)

More floors and book shelves were built to hold all the books. In 1931, Sir Joseph Duveen gave money to build a special gallery for the Parthenon sculptures. This gallery was finished in 1938.

Before World War II, the museum prepared for air raids. They moved valuable items to safe basements, country houses, and even an underground train station. This was a good idea, because in 1940, the Duveen Gallery was badly damaged by bombing. Other parts of the museum were also hit.

After the war, the museum worked to bring its collections back and repair the damage. Important new items were added, like treasures from Ur in Mesopotamia. Also, gold and silver items from the Sutton Hoo ship burial (1939) and Roman silver from Mildenhall (1946) were added.

A Modern Museum (1950-1975)

In 1953, the museum celebrated its 200th birthday. Many changes happened. An Education Service was started in 1970 to help visitors learn more. In 1963, a new law made it easier for the museum to lend objects. The Natural History Museum also became fully independent. By 1962, the Duveen Gallery was repaired. The Parthenon Sculptures were moved back into it.

In the 1970s, the museum grew again. Visitor numbers jumped when the "Treasures of Tutankhamun" exhibition opened in 1972. It attracted almost 1.7 million visitors! In the same year, the British Library officially separated from the British Museum. This left the museum with its collections of ancient objects, coins, and prints. The books did not leave the museum until 1997.

The Great Court Appears (1975-2000)

When the British Library moved to a new building in 1998, it left a lot of empty space in the museum. This allowed the museum to create the Queen Elizabeth II Great Court. This is the largest covered square in Europe. It opened in 2000. The collections of objects from different cultures (ethnography) were also moved back into new galleries in the museum.

The museum also started collecting more "modern" objects. These included prints, drawings, and decorative arts. Digs continued in places like the Near East, Egypt, and Sudan. The museum also started to get more money from private donations. In 2000, the British Museum won the National Heritage Museum of the Year award.

The British Museum Today

Today, the British Museum no longer has natural history collections. Its books and manuscripts are now part of the British Library. But the museum still collects objects from all cultures, ancient and modern. The original collection of 1753 has grown to over 13 million objects at the British Museum.

The Round Reading Room opened in 1857. For almost 150 years, researchers used this room to study the museum's huge library. The Reading Room closed in 1997 when the British Library moved. Today, it is a special center for events and learning.

The empty space in the central courtyard was used to build the Queen Elizabeth II Great Court. This glass-roofed area opened in 2000. It helps people move around the museum better. New galleries were also built for African collections.

The museum has a very large website. It has one of the biggest online databases of museum objects in the world. In 2023, it had almost 4.5 million object entries. Many of these have pictures. In 2013, the museum's website had 19.5 million visits.

In 2013, the museum had a record 6.7 million visitors. Popular exhibitions like "Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum" helped bring in more people.

How the Museum is Run

Director and Trustees

The British Museum is a public body supported by the government. Its leader is the Director of the British Museum. The museum used to be run by a 'principal librarian'. This role was renamed 'director' in 1973.

A group of 25 trustees helps manage the museum. They make sure the museum follows the rules set by law. The trustees hold the collections for the nation. They mostly give advice now.

The Museum Building

The museum's main entrance on Great Russell Street looks like an ancient Greek temple. It has 44 tall columns. The sculptures above the main entrance show The Progress of Civilisation. These were put up in 1852.

Building started around the courtyard in 1823. The East Wing, which holds the King's Library, was finished in 1828. The North Wing was built next, from 1833 to 1838. The old Montagu House was torn down in 1842. The rest of the building, including the South Wing with its large columns, was finished by 1847. The museum is made of Portland stone.

Robert Smirke's brother, Sydney Smirke, became the museum's architect in 1846. He designed the Round Reading Room, which opened in 1857. Its dome was the second widest in the world at the time.

In 1895, the museum bought 69 houses around its building. They planned to build new galleries all around the museum. But only the Edward VII galleries in the North Front were built. These opened in 1914. They now hold the museum's collections of Prints and Drawings and Asian art.

The Duveen Gallery was built for the Elgin Marbles. It was finished in 1938. But it was hit by a bomb in 1940. It was repaired and reopened in 1962. Other parts of the museum were also damaged during World War II bombing.

The Queen Elizabeth II Great Court is a covered square in the middle of the museum. It was designed by Foster and Partners. It opened in 2000 and is the largest covered square in Europe. Its roof is made of glass and steel. In the middle of the Great Court is the Reading Room, which used to be part of the British Library.

Today, the British Museum is one of the largest museums in the world. It covers an area of over 92,000 square meters. It has a lot of storage space too. The museum can only show less than 1% of its huge collection to the public. That's about 50,000 items.

There are almost one hundred galleries open to the public. This is about 2 miles of exhibition space. Some less popular galleries have limited opening times. A new £135 million World Conservation and Exhibitions Centre was built. It provides a large space for temporary exhibitions. It also brings all the museum's conservation (object care) facilities into one place. This center was finished in 2014.

Museum Departments and Collections

Ancient Egypt and Sudan

The British Museum has the largest collection of Egyptian antiquities outside of Cairo. It has over 100,000 pieces! This collection is very important because it covers all periods of Egyptian and Sudanese history. It shows life in the Nile Valley for over 11,000 years.

The museum started getting Egyptian items in 1753 from Sir Hans Sloane. After a battle in 1801, the British army gave the museum many Egyptian items. These included the famous Rosetta Stone. Later, Henry Salt and Giovanni Belzoni helped the museum get more ancient Egyptian treasures.

Over the years, many items came from digs by the Egypt Exploration Society. These included pieces from Amarna and Deir el-Bahari. The museum also did its own digs in Egypt and Sudan. Today, the Egyptian collection has over 110,000 objects.

The museum has seven permanent Egyptian galleries. These can only show about 4% of the collection. The second floor has a selection of the museum's 140 mummies and coffins. This is the largest collection outside Cairo. These items, especially the mummies, are very popular with visitors.

Some famous items include:

• The mummies from Gebelein (around 3400 BC).
• The Battlefield Palette, a cosmetic palette (around 3100 BC).
• The Rosetta Stone, which helped decode hieroglyphs (196 BC).
• Colossal head of Amenhotep III (1350 BC).
• The Amarna Tablets, ancient clay letters (1350 BC).
• The Papyrus of Ani, a beautiful Book of the Dead (1275 BC).
• The Sphinx of Taharqo, a granite statue (680 BC).
• Many Fayum mummy portraits (40–250 AD).

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  Room 4 – Three black granite statues of the pharaoh Senusret III, c. 1850 BC

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  Room 4 – Three black granite statues of the goddess Sakhmet, c. 1400 BC

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  Room 4 – Colossal statue of Amenhotep III, c. 1370 BC

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  Great Court – Colossal quartzite statue of Amenhotep III, c. 1350 BC

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  Room 4 - Limestone statue of a husband and wife, 1300–1250 BC

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  Room 63 - Gilded outer coffins from the tomb of Henutmehyt, Thebes, Egypt, 19th Dynasty, 1250 BC

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  Book of the Dead of Hunefer, sheet 5, 19th Dynasty, 1250 BC

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  Room 4 – Ancient Egyptian bronze statue of a cat from the Late Period, c. 664–332 BC

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  Room 4 – Green siltstone head of a Pharaoh, 26th–30th Dynasty, 600–340 BC

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  Great Court – Black siltstone obelisk of King Nectanebo II of Egypt, Thirtieth dynasty, c. 350 BC

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  Room 62 – Detail from the mummy case of Artemidorus the Younger, a Greek who had settled in Thebes, Egypt, during Roman times, 100–200 AD

Ancient Greece and Rome

The British Museum has one of the world's largest collections of items from the Classical world. It has over 100,000 objects. These items range from the start of the Greek Bronze Age (about 3200 BC) to the rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire (313 AD). Many early archaeologists helped build this collection.

The Greek objects come from all over the ancient Greek world. This includes mainland Greece, the Aegean Islands, Turkey, Egypt, and southern Italy. The collection has items from the Cycladic, Minoan, and Mycenaean cultures. It also has important sculptures from the Parthenon in Athens. Plus, parts of two of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the Temple of Artemis at Ephesos.

The museum also has a large collection of Italic and Etruscan items. It has many objects from the Roman Empire, except for Britain (those are in another department).

Important collections include ancient jewelry, bronzes, Greek vases, Roman glass (like the famous Portland Vase), and Roman silver. The Townley collection has many Roman sculptures.

Objects from Greece and Rome are found throughout the museum. Many large sculptures are on the ground floor. Smaller items are on the upper floor.

Some famous items include:

• The Parthenon Marbles (447–438 BC).
• A Caryatid column from the Erechtheion (415 BC).
• Parts of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus (around 350 BC).
• The Demeter of Knidos statue (350 BC).
• The Portland Vase, a famous Roman glass vessel (1–25 AD).
• The Gladius of Mainz, a Roman sword (15 AD).
• The Discus-thrower statue (1st–2nd centuries AD).

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  Room 12 – A gold earring from the Aegina Treasure, Greece, 1700-1500 BC

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  Room 18 – Parthenon statuary from the east pediment and Metopes from the south wall, Athens, Greece, 447-438 BC

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  Room 19 – Caryatid and Ionian column from the Erechtheion, Acropolis of Athens, Greece, 420-415 BC

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  Room 20 – Tomb of Payava, Lycia, Turkey, 360 BC

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  Room 21 – Fragmentary horse from the colossal chariot group which topped the podium of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, Turkey, c. 350 BC

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  Room 22 - Gold oak wreath with a bee and two cicadas, western Turkey, c. 350-300 BC

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  Room 22 - Colossal head of Asclepius wearing a metal crown (now lost), from a cult statue on Melos, Greece, 325-300 BC

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  Room 22 – Bronze head and hand of an ancient Hellenistic statue discovered in Satala, Turkey, 200-100 BC

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  Room 69 - Roman gladiator helmet from Pompeii, Italy, 1st century AD

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  Room 22 – Roman marble copy of the famous 'Spinario (Boy with Thorn)', Italy, c. 1st century AD

Middle East Collections

The British Museum has the largest collection of Mesopotamian antiquities outside of Iraq. It has about 330,000 items. This collection is very important. It includes many Assyrian sculptures and items from Babylonia and Sumer. Whole rooms are covered with alabaster reliefs from ancient palaces.

The collections show the civilizations of the ancient Near East. This includes Mesopotamia, Persia, the Arabian Peninsula, Turkey, and parts of Central Asia. The items range from prehistoric times to the 7th century AD.

The museum started getting Mesopotamian objects in 1825. Then, A. H. Layard greatly expanded the collection. He dug at Assyrian sites like Nimrud and Nineveh from 1845 to 1851. He found palaces and temples. This brought many large sculptures, like Lamassus (human-headed winged bulls), and the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III, to the museum.

Layard's assistant, Hormuzd Rassam, continued the work. He found the North Palace of Ashurbanipal at Nineveh. This included the famous Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipal reliefs. He also found the Royal Library of Ashurbanipal. This huge collection of about 130,000 cuneiform clay tablets is very important.

Later, Leonard Woolley dug at Ur from 1922 to 1934. He found royal cemeteries from 3000 BC. Some masterpieces include the Standard of Ur, the Ram in a Thicket, and the Royal Game of Ur.

The museum also has collections from other areas. The Achaemenid collection includes the Oxus Treasure, a large hoard of gold items. The later Sasanian Empire is shown with silver plates and cups. Phoenician items come from places like Sardinia and Carthage. The museum also has a great collection of ancient Yemeni items.

The museum's collection of Islamic art has about 40,000 objects. This includes pottery, paintings, metalwork, and glass. It is famous for its Iznik ceramics and mosque lamps.

About 4,500 objects from the Middle East are on display in 13 galleries. The ground floor has large sculptures from Assyrian palaces. The upper floor has smaller items. The rest of the collection is stored for study.

Some famous items include:

• The Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III (858–824 BC).
• The Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipal reliefs from Nineveh (around 645 BC).
• The Flood Tablet from the Epic of Gilgamesh (7th century BC).
• The Standard of Ur (2600 BC).
• The Ram in a Thicket statue (2600–2400 BC).
• The Royal Game of Ur, an ancient board game (2600–2400 BC).
• The Cyrus Cylinder, an ancient Persian text (559–530 BC).
• The Oxus Treasure, a collection of ancient Persian gold (550–330 BC).

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  Room 56 – The 'Ram in a Thicket' figure, one of a pair, from Ur, Southern Iraq, c. 2600 BC

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  Room 56 – The famous 'Standard of Ur', a hollow wooden box with scenes of war and peace, from Ur, c. 2600 BC

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  Room 56 - Sculpture of the god Imdugud, lion-headed eagle surmounting a lintel made from sheets of copper, Temple of Ninhursag at Tell al-'Ubaid, Iraq, c. 2500 BC

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  Room 56 - Statue of Kurlil, from the Temple of Ninhursag in Tell al-'Ubaid, southern Iraq, c. 2500 BC

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  Room 57 - Carved ivory object from the Nimrud Ivories, Phoenician, Nimrud, Iraq, 9th–8th century BC

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  Room 6 – Depiction of the hypocrite, Jehu, King of Israel on the Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III, Nimrud, c. 827 BC

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  Room 10 – Human Headed Winged Bulls from Khorsabad, companion pieces in the Musée du Louvre, Iraq, 710–705 BC

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  Room 55 – Cuneiform Collection, including the Epic of Gilgamesh, Iraq, c. 669-631 BC

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  Room 55 – Lion Hunt of Ashurbanipal (detail), Nineveh, Neo-Assyrian, Iraq, c. 645 BC

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  Room 55 - Panel with striding lion made from glazed bricks, Neo-Babylonian, Nebuchadnezzar II, Southern Iraq, 604–562 BC

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  Room 52 – A chariot from the Oxus Treasure, the most important surviving collection of Achaemenid Persian metalwork, c. 5th to 4th centuries BC

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  Great Court - Decorated column base from Hundred Column Hall, Persepolis, 470-450 BC

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  Room 53 - Stela said to come from Tamma' cemetery, Yemen, 1st century AD

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  Room 53 - Alabaster statue of a standing female figure, Yemen, 1st-2nd centuries AD

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  Room 34 - Cylindrical lidded box with an Arabic inscription recording its manufacture for the ruler of Mosul, Badr al-Din Lu'lu', Iraq, c. 1233 – 1259 AD

Prints and Drawings

The Department of Prints and Drawings holds the national collection of Western prints and drawings. It is one of the largest and best collections in the world. Visitors can easily see the items in the Study Room. The department also has its own exhibition gallery (Room 90). The displays there change several times a year.

This collection started in 1808. It has grown to be very famous. There are about 50,000 drawings and over two million prints. The drawings cover art from the 14th century to today. They include many high-quality works by leading European artists. The print collection covers fine printmaking from its beginnings in the 15th century.

Key artists whose works are in the collection include Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, Dürer, Peter Paul Rubens, Rembrandt, and Goya. The collection also has over 30,000 British drawings and watercolours. These include important works by Hogarth, Turner, and Constable. It also has a unique set of watercolours by John White, the first British artist in America.

Over 500,000 objects from this department are now online. Many have high-quality images. In 2011, a donation helped the museum buy a complete set of Pablo Picasso's Vollard Suite.

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  Rogier van der Weyden - Portrait of a Young Woman, c. 1440

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  Hieronymus Bosch - A comical barber scene, c. 1477–1516

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  Sandro Botticelli - Allegory of Abundance, 1480–1485

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  Leonardo da Vinci – The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John the Baptist (prep for 'The Burlington House Cartoon'), c. 1499–1500

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  Michelangelo – Studies of a reclining male nude: Adam in the fresco The Creation of Man on the vault of the Sistine Chapel, c. 1511

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  Raphael – Study of Heads, Mother and Child, c. 1509–1511

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  Titian – Drowning of the Pharaoh's Host in the Red Sea, 1515–1517

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  Albrecht Dürer - Drawing of a walrus, 1521

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  Hans Holbein the Younger - Portrait of Anne Boleyn, 1536

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  Peter Paul Rubens - Study for the figure of Christ on the Cross, 1610

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  Francisco de Zurbarán - Head of a monk, 1625–1664

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  Claude Lorrain - Drawing of mules, including one full-length, 1630–1640

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  Rembrandt – The Lamentation at the Foot of the Cross, 1634–35

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  Thomas Gainsborough - Drawing of a woman with a rose, 1763–1765

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  J. M. W. Turner - Watercolour of Newport Castle, 1796

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  Isaac Cruikshank - 'The happy effects of that grand system of shutting ports against the English!!', 1808

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  John Constable - London from Hampstead Heath in a Storm, (watercolour), 1831

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  James McNeill Whistler - View of the Battersea side of Chelsea Reach, London, (lithograph), 1878

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  Vincent van Gogh - Man Digging in the Orchard (print), 1883

Britain, Europe, and Prehistory

This department covers a huge range of time and places. It includes some of the oldest objects made by humans. These are from East Africa over 2 million years ago. It also has Prehistoric and Neolithic items from other parts of the world. Plus, art and archaeology from Europe from ancient times to today.

The department has millions of objects from the Paleolithic (Old Stone Age) and Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) periods. It also has many items from the Neolithic (New Stone Age), Bronze Age, and Iron Age in Europe. Famous archaeologists like Louis and Mary Leakey have donated items.

The museum's collections from AD 300 to 1100 are among the largest in the world. They cover areas from Spain to the Black Sea. A special highlight from the early medieval period is the amazing items from the Sutton Hoo royal grave in England. The late medieval collection has many seal-dies and medieval rings.

Other collections include about 100 icon paintings from the Byzantine Empire and Russia. There are also over 40 medieval astrolabes. The department also has a national collection of horology (the study of time and clocks). It has many clocks, watches, and other timepieces.

This department also cares for Romano-British objects. This is the largest collection of its kind in Britain. It is famous for its many late Roman silver treasures, like the Mildenhall Treasure. The department also has items from different cultures across Europe.

Objects from this department are mostly on the upper floor of the museum. Most of the collection is stored in its archives.

Some famous items include:

• Handaxe from Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania (around 1.2 million years BC).
• Swimming Reindeer carving from France (around 13,000 years BC).
• The Mold gold cape from Wales (1900–1600 BC).
• The Sutton Hoo helmet from England (early 7th century AD).
• The famous Lewis chessmen from Scotland (12th century).
• The Holy Thorn Reliquary from Paris, France (14th century).
• The Royal Gold Cup from Paris, France (1370–80 AD).
• The Mildenhall Treasure, late Roman silver from England (4th century).
• The Lothair Crystal, a Carolingian crystal (9th century).

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  Room 2 – Handaxe, Lower Palaeolithic, Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, c. 1.2 million years BC

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  Room 3 – Swimming Reindeer carving, France, c. 13,000 years BC

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  Room 2 – Ain Sakhri lovers, from the cave of Ain Sakhri, near Bethlehem, c. 9000 BC

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  Room 51 – Mold gold cape, North Wales, Bronze Age, c. 1900–1600 BC

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  Room 50 – Wandsworth Shield, Iron Age shield boss in La Tène style, England, 2nd century BC

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  Room 50 – Gold torc found in Needwood Forest, central England, 75 BC

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  Room 49 - Bronze head of a Roman emperor Claudius, from Rendham in Suffolk, eastern England, 1st century AD

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  Room 49 – Romano-British crown and diadem found in Hockwold cum Wilton, England 1st century AD

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  Room 49 – Hinton St Mary Mosaic with face of Christ in the centre, from Dorset, southern England, 4th century AD

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  Room 49 – Corbridge Lanx, silver tray depicting a shrine to Apollo, northern England, 4th century AD

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  Room 41 – Silver objects from the Roman Coleraine Hoard, Northern Ireland, 4th-5th centuries AD

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  Room 41 – Sutton Hoo helmet, Anglo-Saxon, England, early 7th century AD

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  Room 40 – Ivory statue of Virgin and Child, who is crushing a dragon under her left foot from Paris, France, 1310-1330 AD

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  Room 40 – Chaucer Astrolabe, the oldest dated in Europe, 1326 AD

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  Room 40 – Royal Gold Cup or Saint Agnes Cup, made in Paris, France, 1370–80 AD

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  Room 2a – Holy Thorn Reliquary, made in Paris, c. 1390s AD

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  Room 38 – Mechanical Galleon clock, Augsburg, Germany, around 1585 AD

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  Room 38 – Carillon clock with automata by Isaac Habrecht, Switzerland, 1589 AD

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  Room 39 – Ornate clock made by Thomas Tompion, England, 1690 AD

Asian Collections

The Department of Asia has a very wide scope. Its collections of over 75,000 objects cover the cultures of the whole Asian continent. They range from the Neolithic period to today. Many objects were collected by explorers and officials from former parts of the British Empire.

In 2004, ethnographic (cultural) collections from Asia were added to this department. These show the different environments of Asia. They include items from India to China, and the Middle East to Japan. Many items come from tribal cultures and hunter-gatherers.

The main gallery for Asian art is Gallery 33. It shows Chinese, Indian, and Southeast Asian objects. Other galleries show Japanese, Korean, painting, and Chinese ceramics.

Some famous items include:

• Sculpture from the Indian subcontinent, like the Buddhist limestone reliefs from Amaravati.
• Chinese antiquities, paintings, porcelain, and jade.
• The Admonitions Scroll by Chinese artist Gu Kaizhi (344–406 AD).
• The colossal Amitābha Buddha from Hancui, China (585 AD).
• The Pericival David collection of Chinese ceramics.
• Japanese prints, including The Great Wave off Kanagawa (1829–32 AD).

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  Room 33 - Cubic weights made of chert from Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan, 2600-1900 BC

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  Room 33 - One of the hu from Huixian, China, 5th century BC

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  Room 33 - A hamsa sacred goose vessel made of crystal from Stupa 32, Taxila, Pakistan, 1st century AD

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  Room 33 - Stone sculpture of the death of Buddha, Gandhara, Pakistan, 1st-3rd centuries AD

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  Room 91a - Section of the Admonitions Scroll by Chinese artist Gu Kaizhi, China, c. 380 AD

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  Room 33 - Gilded bronze statue of the Buddha, Dhaneswar Khera, India, 5th century AD

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  The Amitābha Buddha from Hancui on display in the museum's stairwell, China, 6th century AD

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  Room 33 - The luohan from Yixian made of glazed stoneware, China, 907-1125 AD

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  Room 33 - Western Zhou bronze ritual vessel known as the "Kang Hou Gui", China, 11th century BC

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  Room 33 - A crowned figure of the Bodhisattva Khasarpana Avalokiteśvara, India, 12th century AD

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  Room 33 - Covered hanging jar with underglaze decoration, Si Satchanalai (Sawankalok), north-central Thailand, 14th-16th centuries AD

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  Room 33 - Hu-shaped altar flower vessel, Ming dynasty, China, 15th -16th centuries AD

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  Room 33 - An assistant to the Judge of Hell, figure from a judgement group, Ming dynasty, China, 16th century AD

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  Room 33 - Statue of Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, gilded bronze. Nepal, 16th century AD

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  Portrait of Ibrâhîm 'Âdil Shâh II (1580–1626), Mughal Empire of India, 1615 AD

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  Room 90 - Courtesans of the Tamaya House, attributed to Utagawa Toyoharu, screen painting; Japan, Edo period, late 1770s or early 1780s AD

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  Room 33 - Large statue of Buddha made of lacquer from Burma, 18th-19th century AD

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  Room 33 - Figure of seated Lama; of painted and varnished papier-mâché, Ladakh, India, 19th century AD

Africa, Oceania, and the Americas

This department has one of the world's largest collections of cultural items from Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. It shows the cultures of indigenous peoples from around the world. There are over 350,000 objects, covering thousands of years of history.

Objects from this department are mostly on display on the ground and lower floors. Gallery 24 shows items from every continent. Other galleries focus on North America and Mexico. A long set of rooms (Gallery 25) on the lower floor shows African art.

African Art and Culture

The Sainsbury African Galleries display 600 objects. This is part of the world's greatest collection of African arts and culture. The three galleries show both ancient and modern items. They include unique masterpieces and everyday objects.

Highlights include:

• Beautiful Afro-Portuguese ivories.
• Asante goldwork from Ghana.
• The rare Akan Drum.
• The famous Benin and Igbo-Ukwu bronze sculptures.
• The beautiful Bronze Head of Queen Idia.
• The unique Luzira Head from Uganda.
• Objects from Great Zimbabwe.

Oceanic Collections

The museum's Oceanic collections come from the vast Pacific Ocean. This includes Papua New Guinea, Easter Island, New Zealand, and Hawaii. Many items are made from stone, shell, bone, and bamboo. This is because metalworking was not common in Oceania before Europeans arrived.

The British Museum has some of the earliest collections from Oceania and the Pacific. Many were gathered by explorers like Cook and Vancouver. The Māori collection is the best outside New Zealand. It has many carved wooden and jade objects. The Aboriginal art collection has many bark paintings.

Other highlights include:

• A large war canoe from the Solomon Islands.
• The unique statue of A'a from Rurutu Island.
• The huge Hawaiian statue of Kū-ka-ili-moku, the god of war.
• The famous Easter Island statues Hoa Hakananai'a and Moai Hava.

American Collections

The Americas collection mostly has items from the 19th and 20th centuries. But older cultures like the Paracas, Moche, Inca, Maya, Aztec, and Taino are also well represented. The Kayung totem pole from Haida Gwaii stands in the Great Court. It introduces this wide collection.

Highlights include:

• Aboriginal Canadian and Native American objects.
• Two carved stone bowls from British Columbia.
• A headdress from the Arapaho tribe.
• One of the mysterious crystal skulls.
• Nine turquoise Aztec mosaics from Mexico.
• Important items from Teotihuacan.
• Rare pre-Columbian manuscripts like the Codex Zouche-Nuttall.
• Amazing Mayan lintels from Yaxchilan.
• A very high-quality Mayan collection.
• An ornate calcite vase with jaguar handles from Honduras.
• Pre-Columbian human mummies from South America.
• Gold objects from Colombia.
• The Kayung totem pole, a large wooden pole.

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  Room 26 - Stone pipe representing an otter from Mound City, Ohio, USA, 200 BC - 400 AD

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  Room 2 - Stone tomb guardian, part human part jaguar, from San Agustín, Colombia, c. 300-600 AD

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  Room 1 - Maya maize god statue from Copán, Honduras, 600-800 AD

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  Room 24 - Gold Lime Flasks (poporos), Quimbaya Culture, Colombia, 600-1100 AD

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  Room 27 - Lintel 25 from Yaxchilan, Late Classic, Mexico, 600-900 AD

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  Room 24 - Bird pectoral made from gold alloy, Popayán, Colombia, 900-1600 AD

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  Room 24 – Rapa Nui statue Hoa Hakananai'a, 1000 AD, Wellcome Trust Gallery

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  Room 27 - Double-headed serpent turquoise mosaic, Aztec, Mexico, 1400-1500 AD

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  Room 27 - Turquoise Mosaic Mask, Mixtec-Aztec, Mexico, 1400-1500 AD

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  Room 2 - Miniature gold llama figurine, Inca, Peru, about 1500 AD

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  Room 25 - Part of the famous collection of Benin brass plaques, Nigeria, 1500-1600 AD

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  Room 25 - Detail of one of the Benin brass plaques in the museum, Nigeria, 1500-1600 AD

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  Room 25 - Benin ivory mask of Queen Idia, Nigeria, 16th century AD

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  Room 24 - Hawaiian feather helmet or mahiole, late 1700s AD

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  Bowl decorated with pearl shell and boars' tusks, used to serve the intoxicating drink kava, Hawaii, late 1700s AD

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  Great Court - Two house frontal totem poles, Haida, British Columbia, Canada, about 1850 AD

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  Room 25 - Mask (wood and pigment); Punu people, Gabon, 19th century AD

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  Room 25 - Otobo masquerade in the Africa Gallery, Nigeria, 20th century AD

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  Room 25 - Modern interpretation of kente cloth from Ghana, late 20th century AD

Coins and Medals

The British Museum has one of the world's best collections of coins, medals, tokens, and paper money. It has about a million objects. The collection shows the history of coinage from its start in the 7th century BC to today. It includes items from both the East and West. The Department of Coins and Medals was created in 1861.

Conservation and Science

This department started in 1920. It has experts in six areas: ceramics & glass, metals, organic material (like textiles), stone, wall paintings, and pictorial art. The science team develops ways to date objects and find out what they are made of. They also learn where objects came from and how they were made. The department shares its discoveries.

Libraries and Archives

This department helps people learn at all levels. The museum's libraries have over 350,000 books, journals, and pamphlets. These cover all areas of the museum's collections. The general museum archives, which date back to 1753, are also managed by this department. Each department also has its own archives and libraries.

British Museum Press

The British Museum Press (BMP) is the museum's publishing company. It is owned by the museum's trustees.

The BMP publishes books about the museum's exhibitions and collections. The money from these sales helps support the British Museum. They also publish scholarly books that share research on the museum's items.

Galleries

Building

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  Main Staircase, Discobolus of Myron (the Discus-Thrower)

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  British Museum Reading Room

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  Ceiling of the Great Court and the black siltstone obelisks of Nectanebo II, c. 350 BC

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  Detail of an Ionic capital on a pilaster in the Great Court

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  African Garden – created by BBC TV programme Ground Force

Museum galleries

Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan

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  Room 4 – Egyptian Sculpture, view towards the Assyrian Transept

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  Room 4

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  Room 4

Department of the Middle East

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  The British Museum, Room 6 – Assyrian Sculpture

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  Room 8 – Pair of Lamassu from Nimrud & reliefs from the palace of Tiglath-Pileser III

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  Room 7 – Reliefs from the North-west palace of Ashurnasirpal II, Nimrud

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  Room 89 – Nimrud & Nineveh Palace Reliefs

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  Room 10 – Nineveh, The Royal Lion Hunt

Department of Greece and Rome

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  Room 18 – Ancient Greece

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  Room 20a – Tomb of Merehi & Greek Vases, Lycia, 360 BC

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  Room 85 – Portrait Sculpture, Roman

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  Room 84 – Towneley Roman Sculptures

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  Main Staircase – Discobolus, Roman

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  Main Staircase – Townley Caryatid, Roman, 140–160 AD

Digital and Online Resources

The museum works with the Google Cultural Institute to put its collection online.

Exhibitions

• Chronology of Temporary Exhibitions at the British Museum, by Joanna Bowring (British Museum Research Paper 189, 2012) lists all temporary exhibitions from 1838 to 2012.

Forgotten Empire Exhibition (October 2005 – January 2006)

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  Room 5 – Exhibitions Panorama

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  Room 5 – The Persepolis Casts

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  Room 5 – Exhibitions Relics

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  Room 5 – The Cyrus Cylinder

From January to April 2012, the museum showed Hajj: Journey to the Heart of Islam. This was the first big exhibition about the Hajj, a special pilgrimage in Islam.

Images for kids

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  The Great Court was developed in 2001 and surrounds the original Reading Room.

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  Aerial view of the British Museum