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CultureWhat to see at the Wellcome Collection?
Located in London, the Wellcome Collection is a museum that displays a mix of medical artefacts and original works of art exploring "ideas about the connections between medicine, life and art".
The museum also has a library open to the public.
The Wellcome Collection is located just a few minutes' walk from the capital's most famous attractions.
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Founded in 2007, it attracts more than 500,000 visitors a year.
History of the Wellcome Collection
Wellcome Historical Medical Museum
The Wellcome Historical Medical Museum was founded in 1913 by Sir Henry Solomon Wellcome (1853-1936), pharmacist, entrepreneur, philanthropist and frequent traveler, in order to preserve its incredible collection of books, objects and works of art relating to the historical development of medicine, all over the world.
Henry Wellcome was an avid collector of the history of medicine and was also interested in alchemy, witchcraft, but also anthropology and ethnography.
In 1926, after a few months of closure, it reopened to the public with a complete reorganization of its collections, as well as new acquisitions.
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Collection is part of the Wellcome Trust, a global medical charitable foundation, founded upon the death of Henry Wellcome in 1936.
Wellcome Collection
The Wellcome Collection opened to the public in June 2007, and is - due to its historical heritage - a member of the The London Museums of Health & Medicine group.
In 2013, the museum expanded and in the fall of 2015 inaugurated new spaces - designed by the London-based architecture firm Wilkinson Eyre - including a spectacular metal spiral staircase that connects the different floors.
Visit the Wellcome Collection
The Wellcome Collection invites you to discover the meaning of existence through galleries, permanent and temporary exhibitions, contemporary and historical collections and public events (meetings during cultural events, public readings, forums, conferences, seminars, etc.).
Explore "the connections between medicine, life and art, past, present and future".
The museum also has a library, a café, a bookstore and conference rooms.
Permanent exhibitions
Located on the first floor of the museum, the permanent exhibitions of the Wellcome Collection present six centuries of history, from the bizarre to the splendid and from the old to the modern.
You will be able to observe the extraordinary and intriguing collection of Sir Henry Wellcome which includes more than a million objects related to medicine and health including: Napoleon's toothbrush, the mummy of a Peruvian man, Darwin's cane, a bean-sized gastrointestinal camera, 17th century wooden, ivory and wax anatomical models, one of the robots used in the project on the human genome, a medieval clip chastity belt, etc.
- Medicine Man: explore intercultural beliefs about health over the centuries and across the world. The exhibition shows how people, across cultures and time, have sought to understand the functioning of the human body, to protect and take care of each other.
- Being Human: Find out what "being human" means in the 21st century. The exhibition is divided into 4 themes: genetics, minds and bodies, infection and environmental degradation - it reflects our hopes and fears about modern medicine and the evolution of human relationships, and features more than 50 works by art and objects: an astronaut who takes refuge with his personal effects towards an unknown destination, an epidemic jukebox, a bronze sculpture scented with mother's milk, etc.
According to Sir Henry Wellcome: "To explore the evolution of man through the ages, one gains in understanding. ».
Temporary exhibitions
The temporary exhibitions of the Wellcome Collection are always remarkable, they cover subjects like sex, death and illness with an academic, dark and a little kinky curatorial spirit.
Wellcome Collection Tickets
Admission to the Wellcome Collection (museum and library) is free and open. Library tickets also include entry to the museum.
There is no time limit for visiting the museum - allow around 2 to 3 hours for the visit. Due to the pandemic linked to Covid-19, access to the library is now limited to half a day (morning or afternoon).
Wellcome Collection opening hours
The Wellcome Collection is open all year round:
- Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Thursday: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Closed Mondays
The library is closed on Sundays.
Go to the Wellcome Collection
The Wellcome Collection is located in central London, in the university district of Bloomsbury, on the north bank of the Thames.
Address: 183 Euston Rd, NW1 2BE, London
To get there, 4 options:
- Metro:
- Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines - Euston Square stop (8 min walk)
- Northern and Victoria lines - Warren Street stop (7 min walk) or Euston (11 min walk)
- Train: Euston, St Pancras or King's Cross station
- Bus: lines 18, 30, 73, 205, 390
- Bike: Bike racks are available near the main entrance and on Gordon Street. There are also bicycle docking stations nearby.
Near the Wellcome Collection
Take advantage of your visit to the Wellcome Collection to visit:
- University of London: 450 m (6 min walk)
- Grant Museum of Zoology: 450 m (6 min walk)
- British Library: 650 m (9 min walk)
- British Museum: 950 m (12 min walk)
- St. Pancras International: 1.1 km (14 min walk)
- Madame Tussauds: 1.7 km (22 min walk)
- Oxford Street: 1.9 km (24 min walk)
- National Gallery: 2.3 km (29 min walk)
- Regent's Park: 2.3 km (29 min walk)
- London Zoo: 2.8 km (35 min walk)
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