Bank of England Museum
lift a real gold bar
The story of money in the heart of the City, free, where the one thing everyone queues for is the chance to lift a real solid gold bar worth a small fortune.
Free to visit · City of London · Bank · EC2R 8AH
Opening: Mon–Fri 10am–5pm · closed weekends
Inside the great windowless wall of the Bank of England is a free museum most people never think to go into. It tells the story of money, from the founding of the Bank in 1694 through hand-engraved banknotes, old ledgers and the gold that underpins it all.
The bit everyone comes for sits in a glass case with a hole in the side. You reach in and lift a genuine bar of solid gold, around thirteen kilos of it, worth several hundred thousand pounds, held in place by a very serious security system. It is heavier than you expect and you will grin like a child.
Around it are surprisingly good galleries on inflation, forgery and how the whole strange machine of money works, told more clearly here than anywhere. A proper free half hour in the middle of the financial district, and a great one with kids.
Getting there: On Bartholomew Lane, around the side of the Bank of England itself, two minutes from Bank station.
Best time to go: A weekday, the only time it opens. Lunchtime is liveliest with City workers, mid-afternoon is calmer.
Insider tip: Go straight for the gold bar, then double back for the rest. It is only open on weekdays because it is wrapped inside a working bank, so it is one to fold into a City lunch break rather than a weekend wander.
Official site: https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/museum
Free things to do in London · London Free Guide