On 7 June 1753, King George II gave his formal assent Act of Parliament which established the British Museum. The British Museum Act 1753 also added two other libraries to the Sloane collection, namely the Cottonian Library, assembled by Sir Robert Cotton, dated back to Elizabethan times and the Harleian library, the collection of the Earls of Oxford.

Opening time

The museum is open every day from 10 am to 5.30 pm
that access to certain rooms is subject to time limits.
Galleries temporarily closed

The museum is closed on
January 1st, 24th, 25th and 26th December

How to reach the British Museum?
The British Museum is located on Great Russell Street and is easily accessible in three ways, either by Tube (underground) or by bus, or by car or on foot depending on where your hotel is located in the English capital . Always carry a guide or a map of the city and the metro to be able to better orientate you. The ways to reach the museum are mainly these:

You should go down and choose the nearest stops like Tottenham Court Road which is about 500 meters from the museum or that of Holborn. But Russell Square and Goodge Street are also some 800 meters away.

With the London buses you can reach the museum with the numbers: 1, 7, 8, 19, 25, 38, 55, 98, 242 getting off at the New Oxford Street stop, while with the buses number 10, 14, 24, 29, 73, 134, 390 going down at the Tottenham Court Road stop, heading north to Gower Street, heading south. Or opt for buses 59, 68, X68, 91, 168, 188 getting off at Southampton Row.