Victorian (1837 – 1901)
Explore objects, stories and blogs illuminating an era defined by the 63-year monarchy of Queen Victoria.
Blogs-And-Stories
Skating through the history of London’s ice rinks
Did you know ice rinks were invented in London? And the earliest version was made from pig fat?
How Florence Nightingale shaped London healthcare
Modern nursing has a lot to thank this 19th-century trailblazer for
Testy teeth! Dental interventions in 19th-century London
What three sets of teeth reveal about an individual’s dietary habits and socio-economic status
The 1889 London dockers’ & tailors’ strikes
When workers from two key local industries – tailoring and the docks – fought for better pay and working conditions
Of Victorian cravat pins & Cleopatra’s Needle
How did a chip off a 3,500-year-old Egyptian obelisk wind up as a fashionable Victorian cravat pin?
What was the Great Exhibition of 1851?
A groundbreaking public attraction on an almost unheard-of scale
Handkerchief politics: The Irish Question
A handkerchief highlights both an interesting phase of British politics and a quirky fashion statement
From avoiding the gallows, to leading a mutiny
What happened to convicts who were transported to penal colonies instead of being executed?
Jumbo the Elephant
How a 19th-century animal celebrity gave us a massive new word
Disability, as seen in 18th-century art
We look at four artworks to see how disabled people were portrayed in the 18th century
Decoding the inspiration behind Whitefriars glass designs
What does this 19th-century book of designs reveal about the Whitefriars glass in our collection?
Rediscover London's lost art of flower-making
Explore the almost-lost but enchanting Victorian craft of flower-making, once a bustling industry in London
Albertopolis: Prince Albert’s London legacy
South Kensington looks a little different today thanks to Albert’s enthusiasm for education and art
London’s lost department stores
Circus animals? Couture workshops? Shopping used to look a bit different
Harrods: A location for luxury
From humble beginnings to one of the biggest emporiums in Europe
The Great Stink of 1858
A smell so incredibly awful it demanded a modern sewer solution
It's a sign: BSL on a 19th-century child's mug
What can fragments of a 19th-century child’s mug tell us about the history of British Sign Language?
Women’s toilets & the fight for the right to work
What can a toilet roll tell us about the history of women’s access to work and leisure?
