On 7 June 1753, an Act of Parliament established the British Museum after Sir Hans Sloane bequeathed his collection of 71,000 objects. Since then, the collection has grown to over 8 million objects and the Museum receives over 6 million visitors a year. This is a pictorial history visually showing the development of different buildings which have been on the Bloomsbury site.
13. The Weston Hall was designed by Sydney Smirke in 1845.
Painting by L W Collman.
14. Construction of the King Edward VII galleries began in 1907, designed by
Sir John Burnet. Painting by Frank Lishman, 1910.
15. Postcard with a view of the Museum from Great Russell Street, 1905.
Note the newly planted plane trees.
16. The King’s Library (now the Enlightenment Gallery).
Photograph by Donald Macbeth c. 1910.
17. This photograph shows the King Edward VII galleries being opened by
George V and Queen Mary in 1914.
18. In 1941 the Coin Room and upper western galleries were destroyed by fire
following an air raid during the Blitz.
19. In the 1950s, building works repaired damage
done to the book stacks during the Second World War.
20. Postcard showing an aerial view of the British Museum, looking north, c. 1930s.
21. Postcard: the colonnade (centre), King's Library (top left), King Edward VII Gallery
(top right), Reading Room (bottom left) and Large Elgin Room (bottom right), c. 1930s.
22. Photograph showing the demolition of the book stacks in
preparation of the building of the Great Court, 1998.
23. The Queen Elizabeth II Great Court opened in 2000, designed by Norman Foster.