Objects and stories
Explore our collection beyond the museum floor and find out the fascinating histories behind even the smallest objects.
Objects and Stories aims to give you better access to this world-class Museum through our ever-expanding digital resources. Search for over500,000 objects and archives inCollection Online, take a look at our curator's highlights below, and discover unique and compelling stories—from objects that have changed our world to the intriguing personal histories that lie behind them.
New stories
Voyage to Mercury: BepiColombo
BepiColombo is a joint mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to visit the smallest planet in the Solar System, and the closest one to the Sun: Mercury.
Collection highlights
Discover the most fascinating, historically significant and awe-inspiring objects currently on display.
Julius totalisator machine—on display in Mathematics: The Winton Gallery
Part of a huge electromechanical machine from Wembley Greyhound Stadium, the totalisator or tote, calculated the odds for each dog in real time as gamblers placed their bets. It also operated a giant display screen.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Russian made Soyuz TMA-19M spacecraft—on display inSpace
This is the actual spacecraft that took astronauts Yuri Malenchenko, Tim Kopra and Britain’s Tim Peake up to the ISS in 2015 and then returned them safely to the Earth the following year.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Cabinet of foreign weights, 1919–1920—on display in Mathematics: The Winton Gallery
Held at the Royal Mint in London from 1818, this cabinet housed weights collected by British consuls stationed overseas, each drawer containing standard weights from the place marked on the front.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Le Corbusier chair, 1930—on display in Mathematics: The Winton Gallery
Designed by Charlotte Perriand for the architect Le Corbusier. Drawing from classical thought, Le Corbusier held that all manufactured products should be designed to mathematical rules of proportion, creating a harmony with the human form.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Crick and Watson's DNA molecular model, 1953—on display in Making the Modern World
This reconstruction of Watson and Crick's model includes some of the original metal plates they used,
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Wells cathedral clock, c.1390—on display in Making the Modern World
One of the oldest clocks in the world and a profoundly significant medieval British artefact, it has been displayed in South Kensington since the late 19th century.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Caroline Herschel's telescope, c.1795—on display in Making the Modern World
This telescope was made by William Herschel for his sister Caroline who, as well as assissting William in his observations, was a noted astronomer in her own right, discovering eight new comets and three nebulae.
© Royal Astronomical Society
Aerial inductance coil, 1943—on display in Information Age
When it opened in 1926, Rugby Radio Station housed one of the world’s most powerful radio transmitters. This enormous coil was part of that transmitter, responsible for tuning the very low frequency signals that sent messages across the globe.
Science Museum Group Collection
Marconi 1.5kw transmitter, 1922–25—on display in Information Age
On a foggy November night in 1922, the words ‘This is 2LO calling’ announced the arrival of the BBC. Using the Marconi transmitter, the station 2LO took words and music from studios in Savoy Hill near The Strand and transmitted them to listeners in London.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Pilot ACE computer, 1950—on display in Information Age
Pilot ACE (Automatic Computing Engine) embodied mathematician and computer pioneer Alan Turing’s idea of a universal machine that could perform any logical task.
Science Museum Group Collection
Iron Baby,Antony Gormley, 1999—on display inWho Am I?
This cast-iron sculpture of a life-size newborn baby lying alone on the gallery floor makes a powerful statement about the vulnerability of humans.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Amy Johnson's Gipsy Moth, 1928—on display in Flight
In 1930 Amy Johnson set off from Croydon in this De Havilland Gipsy Moth aeroplane which she named Jason. Nineteen and a half days and 11,000 miles later, she touched down in Port Darwin, Australia.
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Boulton and Watt rotative beam engine, 1788—on display in Energy Hall
Built by James Watt, this is the oldest essentially unaltered rotative engine in the world.and incorporates all of Watt's most important steam-engine improvements.
Science Museum Group Collection
Sokol space suit used by Helen Sharman—on display inSpace
Sokol space suit and accessories made by Zvezda used by Helen Sharman during the space flight on board the SOYUZ-TM-12 and MIR spacecraft in May 1991.
Science Museum Group Collection © The Board of Trustees of the Science MuseumExplore by topic
Engineering
Discover how engineers can create amazing innovations that our lives depend upon by harnessing novel ways of thinking about, and manipulating, the world around us.
Our Environment
From the lab to the repair shop, scientists, engineers and ordinary people are working on responses to the climate crisis. Discover stories exploring what we know about climate change, and how we can fight it.
Chemistry
Delve into stories of how experimentation and innovation in chemistry affects the world around us.
Mathematics
With stories spanning the centuries, discover how mathematics connects to every aspect of our lives.
