Sir John Soane's Museum 🏛️🖼️
@SoaneMuseum
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The extraordinary house & museum of Sir John Soane, renowned architect and collector. Open Wednesday to Sunday. Entry free.
Lincoln's Inn Fields, London
Joined June 2012
Don't wanna be here?
Send us removal request.
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Exciting news: Sir John Soane’s architectural
#DrawingOffice
– the oldest surviving example of its kind – has been restored and will open to public tours for the first time! ✍️🎉
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Each day at dusk, as the last of the light fades from the London sky, Soane’s use of toplighting creates a quietly dramatic effect: highlighting details, recesses and hidden levels, giving his collection a depth and presence that, even in near-darkness, remains magical! 🌙✨
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Brilliant news – work has now begun on restoring Soane’s Drawing Office! ✏️ The oldest surviving architectural drawing office of its kind, completion, early in 2023, will allow visitors to explore the space for the first time.
We’ll bring you further updates in the new year. 🎉
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Here’s a rarely-seen treasure from Soane’s collection: the pocket watch of Sir Christopher Wren! ⌚✨
As the year of
#Wren300
ticks towards its end, let’s take a closer look at this beautiful item, itself something of a mystery… 🧵
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We love this dazzling 3D scan of the Soane! 😍 You can see all of the wonderful detail up close in our exhibition ‘Neighbours in Space and Time: Grafton Architects at the Soane Museum’, which closes this Sunday – don’t miss it! ⏰
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Explore every painting in our Picture Room! 🖼️ Thanks to the magic of 3D scanning, you can now click your way through the concealed panels and recesses to discover wondrous artworks, or take a Curator’s tour. 🎨🔍
#ExploreSoane
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John Soane, the seventh child of a rural bricklayer, was born today, 270 years ago! 🥳 He became one of the most celebrated architects and collectors of his age, leaving a legacy of delightful details – a remarkably rare reflection of the life and fascinations of one man. ✨
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Soon we’ll be sharing some very exciting news about the future of Sir John Soane’s Drawing Office! ✏️📰 This unique room – currently undergoing a year-long restoration – was once a hub of creativity and inspiration. After almost two centuries quiet, perhaps it will be again? 😉
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Here’s the Soane from an angle you’ve never seen before! 🔍 After our neighbourhood crows got a direct hit on a panel of stained glass, abseiling experts were needed to drop off the back of the Museum, assess the damage and fit a custom-made replacement. Sorted! 👏
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Exciting news! 🚨 Calling all artists, designers and architects – how would you like to make Sir John Soane’s extraordinary Drawing Office your personal studio? 🤯
We’re delighted to introduce the
#ArtistAtSoane
Residency Programme! 🖼️
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Exciting news! During the restoration of Sir John Soane’s Drawing Office, we discovered a time capsule! 🤯 Tucked away within the base of a column, the items include a pipe (with tobacco still in its bowl) and a tube ticket from South Kensington!
A thread… 🧵
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Soane's cork model of the excavations at Pompeii in 1820. Though Grand Tours were important rights of passage for architects of note, they were both expensive, and difficult as wars flared on the continent. Soane's models allowed students a Grand Tour - in miniature.
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Thread: what would a London designed by Sir John Soane have looked like? 🤔
At the peak of his powers, he reimagined the city’s thoroughfares and iconic buildings, built around a grand processional route through London, starting with this triumphal arch at Kensington! 🎉 (1/4)
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Did you know the Soane family tomb inspired the famous ‘K2’ red telephone box? 📞
#OTD
in 1837, John Soane passed away. It was a Museum trustee, architect Giles Gilbert Scott, who immortalised the domed roof of Soane's tomb in his iconic phone box design – what a legacy! 😍
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Feel like visiting a Museum today? Well you're in luck because our Explore Soane site allows you to explore the Sepulchral Chamber & Model Room of the
#SoaneMuseum
online.
#MuseumsAtHome
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This little alcove, called the Museum Corridor, contains a myriad of architectural fragments and casts. Soane saw casts as a vital way of spreading architectural knowledge, allowing students to draw 'from life' monuments they could not visit.
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Happy new year! 🎉 2024 marks two centuries of John Soane’s celebrated Picture Room. Home to 118 works of art, it’s a wonder of innovative design as well as the heart of an extraordinary collection. If you’re planning a visit this year, we look forward to showing you around! 👋
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Good morning, London! 👋 We’re open throughout the Easter weekend, including today and Monday, so do pop in and ask our venerable sun god Apollo why the weather’s always a bit patchy on bank holidays!🌦️
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Happy
#InternationalMuseumDay
from the
#SoaneMuseum
! The house of eccentric Regency architect and collector Sir John Soane, this labyrinth of antiquities and curiosities is free to visit
#IMD2018
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During the restoration of the
#DrawingOffice
, over 200 works were removed, cleaned and reinstalled. Columns were realigned, bookcases and stained glass reinstated, original desks and paintwork rejuvenated – the collective impact of all this intricate work is huge! ✨
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The Picture Room is perhaps the most famous space in the Museum, with its collection of Canaletto, Piranesi and Hogarth paintings and its opening picture planes. Read all about this space in our highlights article
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We’re delighted to share that architect Peter Barber is our 2022 recipient of the
#SoaneMedal
! 🏅
Join us tonight at 6.30pm GMT as Peter presents a lecture on the future of our built environment, live from the Library-Dining Room at the Soane: 🏘️
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Opening this October: our new exhibition,
#GeorgianIlluminations
! 🎆🎉
These complex light displays, using glass lamps, fireworks, transparencies and temporary architecture – such as this amazing 1814 ‘temple’ in Green Park – were an important form of popular entertainment… 🧵
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“I have seen with my own eyes and measured with my own hands the fragments of many ancient buildings.” - Palladio. Working from Roman remains was essential for Neoclassical architects, and explains Soane’s collection of Roman architectural fragments
#WednesdayWisdom
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Today we're delighted to celebrate the reopening of another Soane building -
@Pitzhanger
Manor - after 3 years of conservation. It was Soane's country retreat from 1800-1810, before he moved to No.13 Lincoln's Inn Fields, now the
#SoaneMuseum
, which houses his collection.
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#OTD
1778 Soane left for Italy on his Grand Tour, traveling to Paris, Bologna, Florence, Sicily, Rome, Milan, and Venice. He collected models of the classical ruins he visited, which you can see today on a private apartments tour
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Today we're joining
@bbcarts
@museumsassoc
@nmdcnews
and the team from
#MuseumFromHome
and sharing how you can experience the
#SoaneMuseum
during lockdown. Explore Sir John Soane's much-loved house and museum from your living room with digital tour at
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On these long summer days, Soane’s mastery of light is evident throughout his Museum. He described unique spaces like the Museum Corridor, outside the Picture Room, as ‘lighted in a manner to show the objects on the walls to the greatest advantage’. Mission accomplished! ☀️🔍
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Rome’s iconic Arch of Constantine was a life-long fascination for John Soane. He visited as a young architect on his Grand Tour in 1779, and the collections he amassed later in life are a testament to the impact of that visit. Let’s take a closer look! ❤️🔍
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Take a closer look at the ruins of Pompeii, here in the heart of London! 😍🔍
Throughout his life, Soane collected architectural models of sites he visited on his Grand Tour as a young man. In 1834, just three years before his death, he assembled his beautiful Model Room.
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We’re pleased to announce the Museum’s reopening from 1 October, initially on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Entry will be via free timed tickets, which will be bookable on our website later this summer. (1/2)
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The creative heart of Soane’s practice, new Artists-in-Residence will follow in the footsteps of Soane’s draughtsmen and pupils – bringing this sleeping beauty back to life! 😍
Find out more about the
#DrawingOffice
, the residency, and how to visit: 🔍
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Uncover recently-conserved rooms, including Soane's Model room, on a Private Apartments tour…
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We've just got bigger! Our 7-year restoration project is complete & new spaces are now open
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It’s the Picture Room, but not as you know it! 😍
J.M. Gandy – Soane’s trusted draughtsman – loved to play with reality to celebrate Sir John’s work. Here, he’s expanded the dimensions of the Picture Room and filled it with drawings and models of Soane's buildings! 🖼️🎨
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“From earliest youth not a moment must be lost by him who desires to become a great artist.” - Sir John Soane's vast collection of antiquities was originally displayed for the education of his students
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We’re delighted to share that
@WillGompertzBBC
has been appointed as our new Director! 🎉
Will joins us from the
@BarbicanCentre
and will succeed
@BruceABoucher
at the end of the year. Our heartfelt thanks to Bruce, and welcome aboard, Will! 👋
More: 📰
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We love a Soane staircase! 😍 Owing to a peculiarity of the site on which no. 13 is built, the Museum’s central stairs broaden to the north – creating this beguilingly asymmetric shape from above. It's a joy to watch the sunlight dance across it on London's brighter days. 🏘️⛅
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Wonderful to look out on a snowy Lincoln’s Inn Fields this morning, from the (relative) warmth of Sir John Soane’s Private Apartments. The stained glass really glows in the winter light! ❄️☃️
#snow
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Soane’s London was one of the brightest cities in Europe! 💡✨
Oil lamps, introduced in the 1730s, transformed the city at night. This illustration of a light show marking the peace of 1802 shows oil lamps at regular intervals down the street, illuminating the delighted crowd.
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It’s in these quiet moments, as the Museum wakes up and we begin to get ready for the day’s visitors and tours, that it’s very easy to imagine Eliza Soane opening the curtains of her Morning Room, taking a seat, and setting about her correspondence with family and friends. 💌🥱
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Soane's private apartment & Model Room will be seen by the public today for 1st time in 160yrs
http://t.co/yuuSeOZJed
http://t.co/bRG1dOFoVY
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Soane's Lectures were illustrated by a series of incredibly detailed drawings, demonstrating his radical views on ornament. Discover these intricate works at our new exhibition Purely Ornamental
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#OnThisDay
1788 Sir John Soane was appointed architect of the Bank of England, a post he held for 35 years. Pictured is an inventive visualisation of his intricate design for the Bank as ancient ruins.
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Happy birthday to Sir John Soane, born
#OnThisDay
1753. A renowned architect, theorist and collector, perhaps his greatest legacy is the Museum, which is free to visit Wednesdays to Sundays.
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At a series of famed parties in 1825, Soane had the Sarcophagus of Seti I illuminated from within by lamps, just like this, to demonstrate the magical effect of light on this vast block of alabaster – see how the beautiful hieroglyphics jump out and dance in the glow! 🔥🤯
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Every month the Museum opens for a candlelit evening, where visitors can explore, take photographs, hear talks and sip a cocktail or two... This month's Gin-themed late offers a chance to see Hogarth's Gin Lane up close
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How rude. You've dodged a bullet
@velzzb
. Anyone not sold on a place they might film Flog It is not worth your ❤️
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Sir John Soane was one of Britain's greatest architects and collectors, and his Museum survives to this day. But his craving for fish and chips was uncontrollable. Here's a portrait from 1829, about to absolutely destroy a massive cod and chips.
#NationalFishAndChipDay
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A sunny bank holiday Monday? In London? It may have only happened a handful of times in our 186-year history as a public Museum, but the many spectacular spaces of the Soane are set to shine in the bank holiday light. We’re open 10 to 5, so do pop by! ☀️👋
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This picture plane is rarely opened - we usually open the larger picture planes adjacent to reveal Hogarth's Rake's Progress. Behind it are kept several Piranesi works, and a beautiful Gandy depiction of the Bank of England in Ruins.
#BehindtheScenes
#ObjectOfTheWeek
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200 years ago, Sir John Soane hung a Reynolds masterpiece in his house, now a much-loved museum. Today its original frame is in desperate need of repair. Please help us restore it to its original splendour. Donate to our
#ArtHappens
campaign:
#SaveTheFrame
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Upon his death 180 years ago today, Soane gave all this to the nation, to everyone, so that it could enrich all our lives
#bridgesnotwalls
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Sir John Soane died
#OnThisDay
1837. His home, now Sir John Soane's Museum, became a national Museum, and its collections of art, architectural models and artefacts remain open and free to visit to this day, displayed as they were upon Soane's death. Entry is free, Weds-Sun
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Soane often worked with Joseph M. Gandy, the greatest illustrator of architectural designs of his day and a close friend. No one understood Soane’s style better, and he commissioned Gandy’s works when he wished to win over clients and critics, or to record unexecuted designs. 🖼️
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The Model Room. Filled with models in cork and plaster of paris depicting roman ruins alongside then-modern buildings, including Sir John Soane's own designs, this space formed Soane's own unique version of the history of architecture.
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We are pleased to announce the premiere of our three-part series, Opening Up The Soane, on
@LondonLive
this Sunday, 19 April, at 8pm! Watch the incredible story of the restoration of the
#SoaneMuseum
on Freeview 8/Sky 117/Virgin 159/YouView 8. Episodes 2&3 on 26/04 & 3/05
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This drawing, produced by Sir John Soane's office for one of his lectures at the Royal Academy, where he was professor of architecture, illustrates the Ionic order according to ten different architects. A pleasant landscape forms the background
#ObjectoftheWeek
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What an incredible journey! Thank you to absolutely everyone who showed their support for us for
#museumoftheyear
. We ❤️you all
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Many of John Soane’s most beautiful spaces sadly only ever existed on paper! 😍📜
This sepulchral chapel – intended for the grounds of Tyringham Hall in Buckinghamshire – was thought too costly, but these drawings by Soane’s office capture the elegance of his unrealised vision.
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Princess Leia and Chewie, hanging amongst Soane's medieval objects in the Museum
#MayThe4thBeWithYou
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Can't face it being
#2019
? Visit the Soane and whisk yourself back to 1837, when Sir John Soane left his house and collections to the nation. Entry is free and all are welcome.
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The Soane, illuminated – as you’ve never seen it before! 🎆✨
This unique work by artist Nayan Kulkarni is a contemporary take on the light shows that captured London imaginations during Soane’s time, as explored in our exhibition
#GeorgianIlluminations
. Isn’t it marvellous? 😍
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Marvellous to welcome
@florencemachine
and the team from
@cbsmornings
to the Library-Dining Room recently to record an interview for Florence’s new album,
#DanceFever
. 🎶🎥
Thanks for visiting – so lovely to share this unique space with the world! 🌍
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Even on a cold winter’s day, the Soane continues to inspire new art! 🎨😍
Artist Melissa Scott Miller’s project has taken her a handful of visits – and doesn’t it look wonderful? We’re sure Sir John would be delighted that his facade continues to capture the imagination! 🖼️
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Today is the birthday of Giovanni Battista Piranesi, born
#OnThisDay
1720. A number of works by the great architectural draughtsman hang in the Soane's Picture Room, including this masterful rendition of the Colosseum in Rome.
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Isn’t this 1811 watercolour of the Museum’s Dome just breathtaking? 😍
Artist J.M. Gandy’s use of directed light is so dramatic, it makes the space feel cavernous and otherworldly. To this day, we ‘uplight’ this space for our
#SoaneLates
, inspired by this very painting! ✨🎨
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Great news: our restoration of Soane’s Drawing Office has won
@georgiangroup
's Architectural Award for Restoration of a Georgian Interior! 🎉
A sleeping beauty, now reinvigorated and open to the public. Thanks to all who made this project possible! 🙌 🔍
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"I have never lost any opportunity of collecting casts from the ruins of ancient structures, marble fragments, vases and cinerary urns, as well as every book and print that came within my reach on the subject of architecture and the arts." - Sir John Soane
#WisdomWednesday
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#ObjectoftheWeek
Soane's design for a triumphal Bridge to cross the River Thames, which won him the Royal Academy's Gold Medal for architecture, setting him up for early success. This particular view was made by Soane's office later, in 1799.
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Introducing
#ExploreSoane
, a new resource putting the Museum at your fingertips thanks to the latest
#3D
technology
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“Architecture protects us from the shivering lightnings and furious tempests, from the heats of summer and the severities of winter; and by its powers the comforts, conveniences, and refinements of life are increased.” 🏘️❤️
Sir John Soane, who passed 186 years ago today. ⏳
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Today, we celebrate 186 years as a public Museum! 🎉
These lovely 1822 watercolours by J.M. Gandy chart how Soane was already spending his latter years crafting his collection for the future, shaping and readying the rooms that our first Trustees opened on 4 April 1837. 😍
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You can now explore John Soane’s Drawing Office from anywhere in the world! ✨🌎
We've teamed up with
@ScanLABProjects
to create a fascinating virtual tour through this beautifully restored space, the heart of Soane’s practice and teaching: 🔍
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Soane’s inventive use of the light was on glorious display in the sunshine yesterday – beams bouncing about, casting momentary spotlights across his silent Museum. A beautiful day to wander these unique spaces and be transported to the worlds of Ancient Rome and Greece! ☀️🏛️✨
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Our £7million restoration is complete & we're thrilled to reveal new spaces opening tomorrow
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An architect “should have a literary education, be… familiar with a great number of historical works and should have followed lectures in philosophy attentively.” - Vitruvius. Sir John Soane seems to have followed this advice, owning almost 8,000 books.
#WednesdayWisdom
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Twitter is great, but sometimes, the old ways of spreading the word about the Soane are the best. We love this poster from our archive, designed and displayed during the 1930s, under the curatorship of architectural historian Arthur T Bolton. Isn’t it beautiful? 🏛️🏺🖼️
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Though the
#SoaneMuseum
is physically closed, we'll be posting here about its artworks, spaces and stories. You can also follow our Instagram where Langlands & Bell are curating our feed:
#Museumsandchill
#MotivationMonday
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Discover one of British architecture's most radical moments in The Return of the Past: Postmodernism in British Architecture, which opens today at Sir John Soane's Museum
#SoaneMuseum
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The restoration of Sir John Soane’s Drawing Office is in its final stages! 🎉
Every January, we close for a week of vital cleaning and conservation. This year, we’re also undertaking the return of many beautiful casts and objects to the renovated Drawing Office and Colonnade.
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The Romance of Ruins: The Search for Ancient Ionia, 1764. Produced in partnership with the British Museum, this exhibition showcases watercolours made on an expedition to discover ancient Ionia and Athens in 1764. Book tickets and view online at
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Caring for the Soane can be precarious work! 🤯
Michelangelo and Rafael had become unstable on their brackets, posing a risk to visitors and the sarcophagus below. Our team cleaned and carefully re-installed them, now safely secured with wooden dowels. Mission accomplished! 👏
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“The ancient Romans, as in many other things, had also greatly surpassed all those who came after them in building well.” - Palladio. Pictured: cork model of the temple of Vesta at Tivoli, one of Soane's greatest sources of inspiration
#WednesdayWisdom
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#OnthisDay
in 312AD, Constantine I defeats Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. Constatine included scenes of this battle in his Triumphal Arch, of which Soane kept a cork model.
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Conservators painstakingly clean artefacts in the Dome area of Sir John Soane’s Museum, central London, before it reopens to the public on October 1. In today's
@thetimes
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Charlotte Brontë's dress will be displayed in London for the first time in
#BronteAtTheSoane
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A cultured kestrel enjoying a lunchtime perch on the balcony of no. 14
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On June 1 we'll be hosting a free online talk with Rory Stewart, discussing his own experiences as a traveller across Afghanistan in 2002, and his visit to ancient archaeological sites there. Part of our talks programme for The Romance of Ruins
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The alternative to going
#MarieKondo
with all your stuff is just to create new walls to hang it on. This is exactly what Sir John Soane did in his Picture Room - see for yourself & explained by one of our expert guides on a Highlights Tour
#WisdomWednesday
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We love these atmospheric watercolours of the Soane’s beautiful country villa:
@pitzhanger
! 😍🏠
Built 1801 - 1803, these designs highlight how the Manor was (and remains) a shining example of the architectural principles and flourishes that Sir John is remembered for today. 🏛️
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Introducing the
#Hogarth
Collection, a collaboration with
@drmartens
http://t.co/g7b9npXlTE
http://t.co/z2kvDDcRFe
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Aren’t these 1837 illustrations of the Soane marvellous? 😍
They were published by The Penny Magazine with an article about the fledgling Museum, which opened in April of that year. As you can see from the wonderful details, not much has changed – apart from the fashions! ✨💃
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Hogarth's Gin Lane satirises the impact of the
#Gin
Craze on London society in the eighteenth century. Learn about this riotous period of history and sip some gin yourself at our Late this Friday
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The Picture Room is one of the most famous spaces in the Museum, ingeniously built to display Soane's collection of 118 paintings within a 13 by 12 foot space. Read more:
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