The Bank of England Museum in London showcases the bank’s history, including furniture, documents, coins, notes, and gold bars. It has a comprehensive coin and banknote collection, as well as displays of tools and furniture used by bank managers. The museum is located in a building designed by Sir John Soane and covers more than 3 acres. It also features two documented stories, including the discovery of a lead coffin in the garden and a daring heist through the sewer system. The Bank of England has been the government’s central bank since 1997.
The Bank of England Museum is located within the central bank on Threadneedle Street in London. It houses artifacts and exhibits tracing the bank’s history from its inception in 1694 to the present. Furniture, documents, coins, notes and gold bars are on display in the Bank of England Museum, which is open to the public free of charge. The museum also offers special events for children which change every year.
The museum’s coin collections range from specimens used when the bank first opened to coins and tokens used over the years. His banknote collection is considered one of the most comprehensive in the world. Drawings and sketches by the original designers of the first banknotes are also on display in the museum. Other artworks show the building’s exterior and interior architecture and paintings depicting early bank managers.
A small display of tools and furniture offers a glimpse into the bank’s function as the second-oldest central bank in the world. Antique watches and chairs probably served bank managers when setting financial policy. Old typewriters, calculators and counterweights represent other tools of the financial industry of the time.
The Bank of England Museum is located in part of the institution covering more than 3 acres (1.2 ha). Banking functions moved to its present site in 1734, with several expansions having taken place over the years on land which previously housed bars, a church and family residences. The building consists of stones hung from a steel frame, designed by architect Sir John Soane.
Two documented stories indicate the site’s unusual history, with both stories illustrated in the Bank of England Museum. Excavators uncovered a coffin constructed of lead and 7 feet 6 inches (226 centimeters) long in 1933. The body was identified as an unusually tall 31-year-old former bank clerk who died in 1798. He was buried in the garden of the bank one day early because officials believed the body might be stolen for medical research.
The second event began with an unsigned letter to bank officials in 1836 from a man who boasted that he could access the gold vault through the sewer system. The anonymous sewer repairman offered to meet with bank managers one night to prove his claim. He actually managed to enter the vault through an old drainage pipe after prying up the floorboards inside the vault. Once the safety issue surfaced, the problem was fixed and the repairman received a reward for his honesty.
Since 1997, the Bank of England has been the government’s central bank. It sets interest rates, if necessary, to tackle inflation and promotes economic stability for the UK. The Bank of England Museum displays a timeline showing how the bank evolved into a public institution.
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