Divine Tours of England
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Museum tours
Let me take you on a discovery of the gems of London and beyond.
I offer a selection of tours, in and outside London, covering popular walks, museums, attractions, and more.
You can easily include any of these museum tours as part of your full day London visit.
British Museum
National Gallery
Shakespeare's Globe Theatre
Tate Britain
Tate Modern
Victoria and Albert Museum
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Wallace Collection
British Museum
One of the oldest museums in the world, it was founded in 1753. Its many collections span tens of thousands of years, the best known probably being the Egyptian collection, with its famous mummies, and the sculptures of the Parthenon from Ancient Greece. Other important exhibits are the monumental statues from the Ancient Near East, the Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, and the Benin bronzes just to mention a few. The architectural highlight is the modern Great Court with the Reading Room at its centre. Why not take a highlight tour and explore these treasures?
National Gallery
An outstanding collection of Old Masters from the early Renaissance to 1900, the National Gallery was founded with the purchase of a private collection in 1824. This classical building on Trafalgar Square has paintings by most of the famous artists of European painting ranging from Titian, Rafael, Holbein, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Rubens, Velasquez all the way to the French impressionists, not to mention the English painters Gainsborough, Constable, and of course Turner. If you are an art lover, come and have a look at this most famous of collections.
Shakespeare's Globe Theatre
This most authentic recreation of Shakespeare’s theatre is made from materials used in the 16th century and is open to the elements; hence the theatre operates only in the summer. The wooden beams and the thatched roof take you back to Shakespeare’s time and to complete the experience, you can take a tour of the theatre to see and hear how it would have worked in the 16th century.
Tate Britain
This major art gallery celebrates British art from the 16th century to the present day and includes works by Reynolds, and Gainsborough, the famous 18th century portrait painters, and a collection of works by the Pre-Raphaelitepainters of the Victorian era. The 20th century is represented by Stanley Spencer, Francis Bacon, more recentlyDavid Hockney, and an outstanding collection of sculpture. The famous Clore Gallery, is the home of the magnificent collection of works by the famous English artist Turner, who in his bequest left all his life’s work to the nation.
Tate Modern
This spectacular museum of modern and contemporary international art from 1900 to the present has its home in the decommissioned Bankside Power Station. Its vast Turbine Hall is used for large-scale temporary installations, and its permanent collection has works by giants of modern art like Picasso, Dali, Braque, Mondrian, Matisse, Andy Warhol, Duchamp, and Mark Rothko, just to name a few of the myriad of artists. If you are a lover of modern art, this is a MUST!
Victoria and Albert Museum
The world's largest collection of decorative and applied arts, the V&A's exhibits cover most aspects of not only European, but also world culture and art history. Highlights are the British Galleries, the Raphael Cartoons, the Sculpture Courts, the dress collection, the glass, jewellery, silver and ceramics exhibitions, and the Asian and Islamic collections, just to mention a few. Tell me what interests you and you will definitely have a great time!
Wallace Collection
The once private collection of paintings, furniture and decorative arts in Hertford House, the main London residence of the Marquesses of Hertford is a remarkable alternative to the large public museums and galleries of London. Still retaining much of the atmosphere of a grand aristocratic residence, its central courtyard has an elegantly glazed roof where lunch or afternoon tea is a superb experience. The collection ranks among the best of French art of the 18th century outside Paris and includes works by Boucher, Fragonard and Poussin. 17th century Dutch paintings, French furniture and Sevres porcelain are some of the other highlights.
There is a host of other fascinating museums that might interest you
- Apsley House – Wellington Museum in the Duke’s grand London home
- Clink Prison Museum – History of painful punishment told by inmates
- Cabinet War Rooms – Underground bunker from which Churchill directed Britain’s war effort
- Design Museum – Fashion, furniture, architecture with some iconic designer items
- Dickens House Museum – Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby were written here
- Eltham Palace – Art Deco mansion with a medieval Great Hall set in superb 1930-ies gardens
- Geffrye Museum – English domestic interiors
- Golden Hinde – Full size replica of Sir Frances Drake’s ship, that sailed around the world in 1577
- HMS Belfast – floating museum on World War II battle cruiser
- The Hunterian – Part of the Royal College of Surgeons with an unusual but extremely interesting museum
- Kenwood House – Superb art collection of Old Masters set in magnificent private mansion
- The London Dungeon – Scary 17th century experience …
- Madame Tussaud’s waxworks– world famous collection of celebrities
- The Old Operating Theatre – 19th century surgery – Ouch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace – Collection of royal coaches used on state occasions
- Sherlock Holmes Museum – Home of the fictional detective furnished exactly as described in his books
- Sir John Soane Museum– Eclectic collection of artefacts and treasures from around the world
