British Museum

Founded in 1753, the British Museum was the world's first national public museum.

Located on Great Russell Street in London, the museum's collections are dedicated to human history, art, and culture.

The British Museum is governed by a board of 25 trustees and is a non-departmental public body that is sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.


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Rare late Anglo-Saxon and early Norman conquest coin hoard discovered in Somerset valued at £4m

29 August 2019

A Bath museum hopes to acquire a rare hoard of coins found in a Chew Valley field that could be valued at £4m.

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Bought for £5 in 1964: 'Lewis Chessmen' piece comes to auction with estimate of up to £1m at Sotheby’s

03 June 2019

Dating from the 12th and early 13th centuries, the Lewis Chessmen collection was rediscovered on Lewis in 1831 and is among the most famous archaeological finds.

Brexit plate

What next for Brexit? While we wait, can you spot the 12 Brexit-related images on this Weeping Willow Brexit plate

12 March 2019

As we approach a crunch vote on Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, a no-deal result is still a possibility – so too the prospect of an extension to the Article 50 process beyond the March 29 deadline.

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They said what!? Philip Mould on the ivory ban and other quotes from the arts and antiques market this week

16 December 2018

This week members of the market reacted to the coming ivory ban, the sale of a Star Wars sketchbook and the rise in finding treasure.

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Metal-detecting trend boosts ‘treasure’ discoveries as numbers hit a record for second year running

13 December 2018

Bronze Age golden jewellery and a Roman goddess kept in a margarine tub are among the discoveries dug up across the UK.

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Ancient antiquities seized from dealer returned to Iraq after British Museum research

10 August 2018

Eight Sumerian antiquities seized by the Metropolitan Police from a London dealer in 2003 are to be returned to Iraq after identification by the British Museum.

Ivory plaque

British Museum accepts 550-piece collection of ivory works of art ahead of UK trade ban

28 June 2018

A vast collection of ivories from The Sir Victor Sassoon Chinese Ivories Trust will be going on display at the British Museum after it acquired the collection earlier this year.

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British Museum launches Egyptian antiquities database to track looted artefacts

04 May 2018

A database of Egyptian and Nubian antiquities has been launched by the British Museum after it was awarded a government grant of nearly £1m.

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Spink-sponsored British Museum exhibition aims to bring numismatics to the public

20 February 2018

The British Museum is to hold an exhibition on money and medals in a tie-up with specialist London coin and stamp auction Spink.

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Waterfall drawing discovered by art critic Brian Sewell saved for the nation by British Museum

04 January 2018

The British Museum has saved for the nation an 18th century drawing by Austrian Romantic artist Joseph Anton Koch (1768-1839) after it was sold at auction from the estate of art critic Brian Sewell.

Winfarthing treasure

Boom in metal-detecting helps ‘treasure’ numbers hit a record

05 December 2017

A record amount of ‘treasure’ has been found in Britain’s fields and ditches by members of the public in the past year.

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British Museum database suffers technical glitch

23 August 2017

The British Museum’s Collection Online database is back up and running after a technical glitch forced it out of action this month.

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Stolen Islamic tile discovered in London art gallery will return to Uzbekistan

19 July 2017

An important glazed Islamic calligraphic tile stolen in Uzbekistan is to be returned to the country after it was discovered for sale in a London gallery.

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Hokusai The Great Wave at auction and on show at the British Museum

23 May 2017

It’s already one of the most famous images in the world, and thanks to a British Museum exhibition opening this week ‘The Great Wave’ is set to thrill an even wider audience.

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Celebrating Japanese woodblock artists and the Brits they inspired at galleries and auction

18 January 2017

The beautiful Japanese woodblock prints created by artists such as Hokusai and Hiroshige inspired similar works across the world and most famously the paintings of Van Gogh.

British Library exhibition looks at Arctic exploration and Franklin

27 October 2014

‘Lines in the Ice: Seeking the Northwest Passage’ is a new exhibition opening at the British Library on November 14 that looks at 400 years of Arctic exploration.

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New British Museum gallery for Sutton Hoo

24 March 2014

With the British Museum’s Vikings exhibition bringing in the crowds, it is an ideal time for its Anglo-Saxon Sutton Hoo treasures to come back into focus in a new gallery.

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Asian Art in London Award winners

12 November 2012

ATG Editor-in-Chief Mark Bridge presents Fabio Rossi of Rossi & Rossi with the Asian Art in London 2D Art Award at the ceremony at the British Museum on Tuesday, November 6.

Portable Antiquities Scheme funding cut 15%

29 November 2010

FUNDING for the Portable Antiquities Scheme is to be cut by 15 per cent in real terms over the next four years, with the biggest impact likely to be on staff costs.

British Museum say Treasure Act is having the right effect

24 November 2008

THE British Museum have credited the Treasure Act – which ensures treasure hunters are compensated for finds – for the significant increase in reported objects.

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