Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology — Attraction in London

Absolute gem of a museum. Spent 2.5 hours there as it is PACKED with objects. Two VERY different coffins, many (also very different) funerary masks, pottery going back to prehistory, some of the oldest material clothing in the world (two dresses and a shirt about the same age as Stonehenge), and all the oddities and accoutrements of daily life from shoes and sandals to door locks and jewellery.

Entrance is up a couple of flights of steep stairs, and there are further steps inside, so it's unfortunately not accessible for physically disabled people/those with mobility challenges (I do hope they fix this discrimination by moving it to the ground floor!).

It can be a pain to find if coming from Euston so, word to the wise, when you find yourself in the midst of a close tangle of buildings, find the medical building and walk through the tunnel underneath. The door may look closed but it simply needs pushing, and when you reach thr top of the staircase, you want the door on the right.

As for taking children - I wouldn't imagine many would be particularly interested, and it really has nothing for young children. But, BE WARNED, the last cabinet on the far side of the room, facing the wall, contains some rather (ahem) 'adult-themed' objects. Five in total. At child eye-level too (their position obviously hasn't been thought about). As much as I found them entertaining, I'm not sure how many parents would be pleased at having to have a conversation about the woman with two men and a youth, or the long wide stick 😯😂

And for the 'glory hounds' there is a pot in the side room that has Tutankhamun's name on it, and various pieces throughout related to the Ramses clan.

Generally, the description cards are brief and lacking the kind of information many non-Egyptologists would find of interest - dates of items are more useful than knowing something was from the 29th or 12th dynasty, there are very few translations of any of the writings, and many pieces are positioned at such a height that anyone under 5'8" would struggle to read the cards. And you'd probably need to be even taller to read some of the things in the top of the large cupboards.

So yes, there is room for many improvements to be made, but for a free museum it's fantastic nonetheless.

It should be noted that there is a card reader for donations by the exit if one is so inclined, with a small shop selling mostly books, and there was a reception desk manned by a helpful and informative volunteer when we arrived.

Would I go again? Absolutely. It has far more to offer than the Egypt hall of the British Museum, though nothing anywhere near so grand. But I don't think I could spend 2.5 hrs looking at the objects of the...

My daughter has become really interested in Egyptian history (possibly because of her Grandad and I) so after becoming extremely overwhelmed at the hordes of people in the British Museum going through the Egypt exhibits we decided to try the Petrie museum and it did not disappoint. From the moment we stepped in we were met by a wonderful person who took the time to stop, talk to us and especially our daughter and find out what we hoped to see, why we were interested etc before showing us some of the most interesting items on display! They then showed us a fabulous colour and create area where the children could relax and unwind whilst the grown ups take a more in depth look around (note to say my husband and I took it in turns.. its open enough in the main room to be able to see the kids bit and I'm sure they would be fine but that's just me). What I really liked was that it wasn't super busy which meant my daughter didn't get overwhelmed and could spend a little more time looking at the things she was interested in (mainly the jewellery!). The unique thing about the Petrie is the fact you can get more of a feel of the day to day life of Egyptians through the ages by seeing board games, jewellery, sandals, combs etc which you don't see as much in the larger museums!

As for the other person volunteering there that day who told someone a story about a young child getting trapped in one of the sarcophagus and people didn't realise for a while that's why it was now in a glass display cabinet you made my day they fell for it hook line and sinker before you then went on to explain about ensuring the items are protected as much as possible so that we can all appreciate them! I was trying so hard not to laugh!!!

P.s I didn't take any pictures which is always a sign I was engrossed in what...

I sometimes get very sleepy in museums, but not this one! Meant to write this review a month ago, now I'm longing to go back and see it again. It's magical, it really is. I wrote some notes for future visitors...

1. it doesn't look like a museum. You actually enter inside the university complex (it's like a big courtyard) but have no fear, Google maps will guide you to the right place. Look for the door next to the takeaway pizza place (the pizzas are very good apparently) then you have to walk up some stairs to get there.

2. The staff are super friendly, lots of lively banter and it kind of made my visit.

3. There's a huge collection of all sorts of things. It's more your everyday Egypt, not just Pharaohs and gold things. Which made it more human to me and bridged the time gap... You can hardly believe that what you are looking at is thousands and thousands of years old. It's astounding. And there's so much of it!!! Not only the artefacts which are on display, there are drawers of undisplayed pieces too, which you are free to look at too.

4. I think a few earlier (much earlier) pieces may have sneaked in. But that's just my very inexpert opinion. See pic.. I'd be glad to know for sure.

5. You can take photos and videos, as much as you like.

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