Magnificent London museum named the best in the UK

In a list by The Times, the outlet’s chief art critic, Laura Freeman, named the UK’s nine best museums, including the V&A and Jupiter Artland in Edinburgh.

Freeman shares that each spot featured on the list holds a place in her heart, with some chosen for personal resonance and others because they have “never failed to lift the spirits”.

Picking her favourite museum in the UK, the art critic revealed that it was London’s own, Sir John Soane’s Museum, that earned the number one spot on the list.

You can see the full list of the UK’s best museums via The Times.

Magnificent London museum named UK’s best

Explaining why Sir John Soane’s Museum is the best the UK has to offer, Freeman shares: “Never, ever could I live in such a house, but it’s magnificent to visit.

“The Soane, part museum, part mausoleum, with a sarcophagus in the basement and labyrinthine passages, has hardly changed since the death of its creator, the architect Sir John Soane, in 1837.

“On a fine day, the sun through the stained glass turns the Soane into a gilded temple.

“On an overcast day, the gloom is enveloping and positively gothic.

“I have been a dozen times but never yet on a Twilight Tour when the corridors and catacombs are lit only by candles.”

Sir John Soane’s Museum on Lincoln’s Inn Fields is a free attraction that allows guests to explore the home of one of England’s greatest architects.

@livinglondonhistory Step inside the mind of a genius by visiting Sir John Soane’s house in Holborn 👀 This living museum is unlike anything else in London. It was the home of innovative 19th century architect Sir John Soane’s house, who packed it with artefacts, paintings and drawings but also designed the house itself with boundless inspiration and creativity. I visited as part of an evening organised by @originaltravel to celebrate Agatha Christie’s legacy and to showcase Steam Ship Sudan, the brand’s flagship travel experience in Egypt. She sailed about that very ship and it was the inspiration for her novel Death on the Nile. We were therefore shown many of Soane’s Egyptian collection. It sounds like an amazing trip and one I would love to go on at some point! Thank you to @soanemuseum for hosting us, it was a wonderful evening. The house is free but I would highly recommend booking one of their Highlights tours to see all the secrets and treasures of the house. #london #londonhistory #londontravel #londonmuseum #hiddenlondon ♬ original sound – Jack- Living London History

Open from Wednesdays to Sundays, between 10am and 5pm, guests can visit by walking in on the day.

Why you should visit Sir John Soane’s Museum

Sir John built and lived in the house two centuries ago.

As an enthusiastic collector, the famed architect began repurposing his home as a museum for students of architecture.

The museum occupies three buildings, No’s 12, 13, and 14 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, which Sir John acquired and rebuilt during his lifetime.

Guests of Sir John Soane’s Museum can explore his collection of antiquities, furniture, sculptures, architectural models, and paintings.

Artwork on display includes works from William Hogarth, J. M. W. Turner, and Italian artist Canaletto.

Throughout the museum, there are more than 30,000 architectural drawings, with the collection described as “full of curiosities and surprises”, according to the Sir John Soane’s Museum website.

Recently, the museum completed restoring Sir John’s Drawing Office, which now stands as the oldest surviving example of its kind.

For the first time in its 200-year history, the drawing office is open for public tours as well as welcoming a new residency programme.

Twice a year, in Spring and Autumn, two artists will be hosted at the museum, where they will be able to work in the office and draw from the museum’s collection.

Sir John died in 1837, and as part of his will, he requested that the museum never change, and so it has been left in the exact design it was at the time of his passing.

The architect also requested that the museum remain free to all, which is still in place to this day.

What do visitors think of Sir John Soane’s Museum?

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Sir John Soane’s Museum has an impressive Tripadvisor review rating of 4.5 out of 5 from more than 1,990 reviews.

One guest on the website said: “Fabulous, can’t believe I didn’t go here before.

“Incredible home of the Georgian architect of the Bank of England, full to the brim with amazing artefacts”.

Another guest wrote: “I had no idea what to expect when I visited the museum, and in some ways that’s the best manner to approach your visit”.

Have you visited Sir John Soane’s Museum? Let us know in the comments.