Museum facts

Museum Facts

Highlights from the Collection

- A rare Register of Nurses which lists women who serves under Nightingale in the military hospitals in Turkey and the Crimean.

- The writing slate Florence used as a child.

- Her pet little owl Athena which she rescued in Athens and hand reared, he became her constant companion, travelling everywhere in her pocket.

- Nightingale’s medicine chest which she took with her to the Crimean. Contains a mix of medicines and herbal remedies, from bicarbonate of soda to powdered rhubarb.

Three pavilions tell the real story of Florence Nightingale, the world of the Victorians and her impact on nursing today.

- The Gilded Cage tells the story of her privileged childhood and her struggle against stifling social conventions.

- The Calling is dramatic and moving, explaining how Nightingale and her team coped with the crisis in the military hospitals where the legend of the lady with the lamp was born.

- Reform and Inspire shows the other side of Florence, the reformer who campaigned tirelessly for health reform at home and abroad.

Place your stethoscope on the Audio Hotspots to hear the voices of Florence and her contemporaries as well as her critics. The cast of characters includes the Jamaican-born nurse Mary Seacole who was famous for her herbal remedies and, the Jamie Oliver of his day, Alexis Soyer who transformed the soldiers’ diet with his travelling stove.

A ribbon of images and films wraps around the Museum, detailing her legacy to nursing today. Meet the thousands of men and women who followed in her footsteps, including those who travelled internationally to set up nurse training schools, the Caribbean nurses who came over to the UK in the 1950s as well as the personal stories of nurses today whose career choice was inspired by Florence.

For the children

- Everyone is invited to enjoy the creative programme of free arts activities. This summer’s fun is themed ‘Inventive Victorians’ and will include everything from pinhole photography to paper making.

- Open Florence Nightingale’s trunk and discover the replica Scutari hospital sash, a bedpan, a roll of bandages and even a stump pillow used by amputees.

- Wear a stethoscope and enjoy an audio-tour especially created for 7 to 11 year olds.

- Little ones, aged 3 to 7, can try their hand at the i-spy trail or peek into the child height viewers to see cartoons which tell the story of the lady with the lamp

- Everyone is invited to enjoy the creative programme of free arts activities. This summer’s fun is themed ‘Inventive Victorians’ and will include everything from pinhole photography to paper making.

New and Interactive exhibits

- How clean are your hands? See the germs on your skin and learn how to wash them properly!

- Florence was a formidable campaigner. Write her a letter about an issue which means a lot to you.

- Turn the pages of the life-size digital Nurses Register and follow the working lives of 8 nurses who began on the fields of the Crimean and went on to have distinguished nursing careers.

- See the Crimean War through the eyes of six different characters, including Tolstoy who was in Sebastopol at the time. This touchscreen exhibit lets you explore photographs, sounds, maps and more.

- Enjoy a changing programme of contemporary art exhibitions, launching with a photography show.

- The new gift shop offers a fantastic range of quirky souvenirs, from the new Florence Nightingale coin to Athena the Owl fingerpuppets.

Caroline Worthington

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.   020 7620 0374