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Christmas at the Geffrye museum in London

The Geffrye Museum in London is one of those local secrets that most visitors never hear about, but once you visit you’ll want to recommend it to all your friends. It’s probably because it’s tucked away in the slightly shabby neighborhood of Shoreditch in East London, and requires a bit of a walk from the station. But don’t worry, you’ll be rewarded by a friendly, intimate museum with loads to see, and it’s all free.

Going to The Geffrye Museum

After walking a while with my streetmap in hand, past nondescript shops, offices and under railway bridges, I finally found the large 18th century almshouse which is the home of the museum. The Geffrye museum takes you on a journey back in time through the domestic interiors of each century which reflect the preoccupations and aspirations of the period.

Rooms at The Geffrye Museum

Room from the 1630s
Room from the 1630s

When I visited in December, all the rooms were decorated for Christmas in appropriate style, with evergreen branches in the earlier rooms, becoming more decorative and festive as we move nearer to the present day. Moving through the centuries from the 1630s, we see furniture and house decoration becoming more elaborate and and cozy, introducing new items from Britain’s trading and colonial past, until we get to the 1960s onwards when clean and simple lines become fashionable again.

The information room at The Geffrye Museum

Room from the 1960s
Room from the 1960s

In between each room-set is an information room, explaining how people lived in each era, with details of how a house would have been used. There is also information available in each room to read, and a kid’s trail through the museum. You can also hire an audio guide for a minimal amount (I think it was £2). At the end of the main room-displays the museum opens out into a larger space with gift shop, an airy cafe which overlooked the gardens and more room displays with a further downstairs exhibition area.

The reading room decorated for Christmas
The reading room decorated for Christmas

The garden room at The Geffrye Museum

The formal gardens at the back have also been designed as a series of garden rooms, in styles from different centuries. The gardens are open in the summer, but in the winter you can see them from inside, especially if you sit on one of the window seats in the garden room where you can find a selection of books to look at. There’s also a large lawned garden in front of the almshouse to sit on sunny days.

The Garden Room
The Garden Room

In a separate part of the museum, you can see the old almshouse spaces, set out as they would have been when occupied in the 18th and 19th centuries. The almshouse section is only open on certain days when you can take a guided tour which must be booked on arrival. Unfortunately I ran out of time, but I’d love to see it on my next visit. I was at the museum for an hour or two but I felt I should have made a day of it, so I shall try and return another time to do it justice.

See my photos of the Geffrye museum on Flickr

Getting there
The Geffrye Museum
136 Kingsland Road
Shoreditch
London
E2 8EA
Nearest tube is Old St and then a 15 minute walk or Liverpool Street, then bus 149 or 242

Other places to visit in East London
The Denis Severs’ House, Shoreditch

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A winter break in London - things to enjoy at Christmas and into the New Year | Heather on her travels

Tuesday 22nd of November 2011

[...] there are several less well known, but no less fascinating museums and I highly recommend the Geffrye Museum, set in an 18th century almshouses with room-sets showing how Londoners lived over the centuries. [...]

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Sunday 18th of April 2010

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Victoria

Friday 15th of January 2010

We LOVE the Geffrye and they do great children's activities every month. It's really accessible for small children because you can look for features similar to your own home and talk about the homes of your childhood with them, or your grandparents homes. We visited at Christmas too, here's my take on it... http://itsasmallworldafterallfamily.wordpress.com/2009/12/07/christmas-past/

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Sunday 27th of December 2009

[...]  A free day out in Greenwich in London A river trip up the Thames to Greenwich - Video Christmas at the Geffrye Museum in London [...]

Catherine

Sunday 11th of January 2009

That 1960s room is just like the front room I grew up in !! except we had lino on the floor not parquet... I agree it is a great tucked away place to visit...