Objects & Stories
Try these journeys
Browse by borough
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Barking & Dagenham
Greyhound racing, 16th-century witch trials and the 1960s Ford machinists’ strike
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Bexley
Links to the Gunpowder Plot and Peasants’ Revolt, and home to arguably the world’s most beautiful sewage works
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Ealing
The borough where entertainment history collides with suburbia – and some striking architectural landmarks.
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Hammersmith & Fulham
A 16th-century palace, an imposing Victorian prison and a glorious suspension bridge
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Haringey
In the 19th century, Haringey welcomed Alexandra Palace and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club
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Hounslow
A borough whose history takes in aristocratic wealth, dangerous highwaymen and rock’n’roll royalty
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Islington
Shaped by waterways, elegant squares and distinctive council estates, Islington is home to cultural icons and radical thinkers
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Kensington & Chelsea
London’s smallest borough packs a big punch with tourist draws like Portobello Road and several world-renowned museums
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Kingston upon Thames
This royal borough’s coat of arms shows three salmon – a sign of its ancient connection to the river
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Lambeth
Culture, industry, a historic cricket ground – Lambeth bears the imprint of many diverse influences
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Lewisham
Taking in areas like New Cross and Sydenham, Lewisham is home to beautiful gardens as well as sites of rebellion and protest
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Richmond upon Thames
Famous for its beautiful parks, miles of Thames waterfront and royal connections
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Southwark
An amazing snapshot of London’s history that spans Roman ruins and the gleaming Shard skyscraper
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Wandsworth
Where you’ll find the iconic Battersea Power Station and some of south London’s best-known green spaces
Browse by time period
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Early Medieval (410 – 1066)
Six hundred years that stretch from the Romans to the Norman conquest of Britain
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Stuart (1603 – 1714)
After the Tudors came the Stuarts, including James I, James II, Charles I and Charles II
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Hanoverian (1714 – 1837)
Spanning the reigns of five kings from the House of Hanover, a British royal house with German origins
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Delve into the fascinating stories that shaped London
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Fashion & Style
Who are the pearly kings and queens?
Since the late 1800s, pearlies have donned their button-covered regalia to raise money for charity
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Rights & Activism
Emmeline Pankhurst: Suffragette icon
Pankurst’s leadership of the militant votes-for-women campaign made her a feminist hero
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Politics & Society
How Charles Booth mapped London poverty
And showed the complexity of social class in the late 19th century
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Death & Disasters
The Great Plague of 1665
An estimated 100,000 people died in London’s last major plague epidemic
More about our Collections
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About our collections
Explore the lives and stories of Londoners through more than seven million objects, including the world’s largest archaeological archive
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What we collect
The museum collects objects that help to tell the stories of this diverse, multicultural city of over nine million people
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Collections access & enquiries
We’d love to hear from you if you’d like to enquire about our collections