Sir John Soane's Museum

Sir John Soane's Museum The house and museum of Sir John Soane, renowned neo-classical architect. Home to an eclectic collect Welcome to the page of Sir John Soane's Museum.
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Sir John Soane, R.A., architect, was born in 1753, the son of a bricklayer, and died after a long and distinguished career, in 1837. Soane designed his house to live in, but also as a setting for his antiquities and his works of art. After the death of his wife (1815), he lived alone, constantly adding to and rearranging his collections. Having been deeply disappointed by the conduct of his two so

ns, one of whom survived him, he determined to establish the house as a museum to which ‘amateurs and students’ should have access. The Museum is a building of outstanding originality, with its picturesque vistas and inventive handling of light and space. He filled it with a remarkable collection of art, sculpture, books, drawings and models. The collection includes paintings by Hogarth, Canaletto, Turner and Reynolds; antique sculpture; plaster casts; architectural models and an Egyptian sarcophagus. The objects are arranged in a labyrinth of top-lit spaces, decorated with hundreds of mirrors.

Have you explored the Soane after hours?✨As the sun sets over Lincoln’s Inn Fields, the last of the day’s golden light g...
27/05/2026

Have you explored the Soane after hours?✨

As the sun sets over Lincoln’s Inn Fields, the last of the day’s golden light gives way to flickering candlelight, revealing a more atmospheric side of the Museum, where artworks and interiors are brought vividly to life by our expert guides 🕯️

Join us this Friday for a summery drinks reception and after-hours access to one of London’s most extraordinary museums – the perfect start to the weekend🥂🖼️

🎟️Plus, for a limited time you can get 2-for-1 tickets for this event via our website: https://shop.soane.org/collections/tours-and-events/products/soane-late-spotlight-on-soane-29-may-2026

Soane's inventive use of light is stealing the show today🌞✨Inspired by his Grand Tour across the Mediterranean, Soane be...
22/05/2026

Soane's inventive use of light is stealing the show today🌞✨

Inspired by his Grand Tour across the Mediterranean, Soane became fascinated with harnessing natural light and manipulating it to craft the mood and character of a space. On sunnier days like today, the Museum is alive with gorgeous orange and yellow light, pouring in through coloured glass skylights and bouncing off mirrors, transporting you out of London and into ancient Greece and Rome🌍

We are open the whole Bank Holiday weekend, including on Monday. Don’t forget to share your sunny snaps of the Museum, and tag us 📸

Every doorway is like a portal to another world✨Soane’s clever design of No 13 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, as well as his use ...
15/05/2026

Every doorway is like a portal to another world✨

Soane’s clever design of No 13 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, as well as his use of large mirrors and windows, means that almost every space in the Museum offers a carefully framed view into another, with unexpected sightlines across the house 🖼️

Where do you find yourself stopping to look?

📸: (1) Kirsty Mclachlan, (2&3) Celia Rogge

𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 | 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧 𝐕𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐩: 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 🎲A major retrospective celebrating the surreal, subversive practic...
12/05/2026

𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 | 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧 𝐕𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐩: 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 🎲
A major retrospective celebrating the surreal, subversive practice of artist Madelon Vriesendorp will open at Sir John Soane’s Museum this July.

Mind Games will feature over 50 works created or collected by the 2025 Soane Medal winner, which reveal the artist’s ability to transform everyday materials into unexpected sources of humour, beauty and inspiration.

A large-scale version of her celebrated Mind Game will also be showcased in the Foyle Space, allowing visitors to closely examine a series of purposefully chosen objects that comprise a psychoanalytical toolkit.

📅14 July – 20 September 2026
🔗Find out more at soane.org

📸(1-2) Afterlife of the Mind Game, no. 1 (2025) and Endgame (2025) by Madelon Vriesendorp. (3) Madelon Vriesendorp in Sir John Soane's Museum

Have you had a chance to explore 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗵: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗮 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 yet?Soane was a great admirer of Vanbrugh’s work, r...
08/05/2026

Have you had a chance to explore 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗵: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗮 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 yet?

Soane was a great admirer of Vanbrugh’s work, referring to him as ‘The Shakespeare of Architects’, and his office produced several large watercolours of Vanbrugh’s buildings to illustrate his lectures at the Royal Academy of Arts, such as these drawings of Blenheim Palace on display in the exhibition.

Blenheim Palace was one of Vanbrugh’s most important works, often hailed for its ornamental profusion. But Soane’s watercolours here – depicting Blenheim in full, half and low light – show that its architectural forms, even its silhouette, were equally accomplished. Swipe to see all three ➡️

🖼️ See these wonderful pieces, as well as many other drawings of Vanbrugh’s major and experimental projects, in 'Vanbrugh: The Drama of Architecture', on display at Sir John Soane’s Museum until 28 June 2026.

06/05/2026

Is there anything better than losing track of time in a museum? 🕙✨

Consider this your sign to slow down and spend time with art. Plan your visit at www.soane.org/your-visit. We’ll see you soon! 🤩

Aren’t these 16th-century Flemish School illustrations exquisite? ✨Books of Hours were illuminated prayer books used by ...
01/05/2026

Aren’t these 16th-century Flemish School illustrations exquisite? ✨

Books of Hours were illuminated prayer books used by Roman Catholics from the Middle Ages onwards. The more wealthy the owner, the more lavish the decoration, so it’s no surprise this one is of exceptional quality. It was created in 1512 as a gift for Johanna, wife of Fernando of Aragon, from Wolfgang Wilhelm, Count Palatine of Neuburg.

A calendar of religious feast days and saints’ day is paired with vivid imagery, depicting the seasonal labours of the peasantry as well as the leisure activities of feudal lords, revealing an increasing interest in depictions of everyday life throughout the 15th and into the 16th century.

Soane acquired this beautiful book in 1833, purchasing it for the sum of £735 from the 1st Duke of Buckingham and adding it to his growing library.
You can see it on display in ‘Bruegel to Rembrandt: Drawing Life, Sketching Wonder’ at Compton Verney until 28 June 2026 🖼️

Spring sunshine pouring into the Museum reveals details hiding in plain sight 🤩Look closely at the large plaster rosette...
29/04/2026

Spring sunshine pouring into the Museum reveals details hiding in plain sight 🤩

Look closely at the large plaster rosette which adorns the centre of the dome in the Museum and you’ll spot small panes of red and orange glass, illuminating the rosette in a beautiful amber hue 🧡

Before Soane built the Dome we see today in 1833, he had designed a much more elaborate structure, filled with blue, crimson and yellow glass. These small colourful panes of glass are all that remain of the original dome, quietly tucked away behind the rosette.

Come and see for yourself this weekend, we are open the whole Bank Holiday, including Monday 4th May – we look forward to seeing you then!

📸Kirsty McLachlan

21/04/2026

Have you ever seen an art gallery quite like this?🖼️😍

Museum Director gives us a behind-the-scenes look at this unique space.

Soane was 71 when he designed the Picture Room in 1824, a space no bigger than thirteen foot square, where he combined elements of gothic and the classical, and of course employed his favourite top lighting to illuminate the gallery, first developed at

The most celebrated and surprising effect in this room however is the moveable planes, which allowed Soane to have three times as many paintings on display than a room of this size could usually hold – 118 to be precise, including pieces by Hogarth, Canaletto, Turner and Watteau🎨

Have this incredible space unveiled to you on one of our Highlights Tours, or join a panel opening during the week – more info on our website!

whatsonlondon

We love this recent shot of the Dome at dusk 🤩As the sun sets over the Museum the atmosphere shifts. The last of the da...
14/04/2026

We love this recent shot of the Dome at dusk 🤩

As the sun sets over the Museum the atmosphere shifts. The last of the day's light is tinged with amber and gold from Soane's skylights, and shadows creep across the space - completely magical ✨

Join us for our next Twilight Tour or Soane Late event to experience the magic of the Museum after it closes. 🎟️Book your tickets via our website: https://www.soane.org/whats-on

📸: Kirsty Mclachlan

Address

13 Lincoln's Inn Fields
London
WC2A3BP

Opening Hours

Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 10am - 5pm

Telephone

+442074052107

Website

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