The Westminster Guide Lecturer's Association organised a private tour of the Sir John Soane Museum on the north side of Lincoln's Inn Fields for their members and I was able to get a place on it. The museum, the smallest of London's national museums, displays an astonishing collection of art, sculpture, artefacts, and architectural fragments, all shown in Soane’s remarkable historic interiors. Sir John Soane rose from humble beginnings as a bricklayer's son to become a celebrated neo-classical architect responsible for designing the Bank of England (later rebuilt) and the Dulwich Picture Gallery. We were taken around by museum guide Phillip, who started by drawing our attention to the architectural and style elements on the ground floor, as well as the paintings and mirrors. Moving through the other rooms on the ground floor, he pointed out the unique alternations made to the home before reaching the Picture Gallery. The Picture Gallery is impressive, with multi-layered panels on several sides of the room that open up to reveal more paintings by artists such as Hogarth, Turner, and Canaletto.
The museum is free to visit and requires no advance booking, but be prepared for a wait to enter as it is popular. You cannot bring any large items in and what you do bring in needs to be in a plastic bag that they will give you. The building is absolutely bursting with items on display and so very cramped; passageways are often very narrow. Opening days and times can be found here: https://www.soane.org/your-visit The panels in the Picture Gallery are only opened at specific times- see the website for those details! Enjoy your visit!
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