The Horniman Museum is a museum in Forest Hill, South London. Commissioned in 1898, it opened in 1901 and was designed by Charles Harrison Townsend .

The museum was founded by Victorian tea trader Frederick John Horniman and contained his collection of natural history, cultural artefacts and musical instruments.

In 1911 an additional building was donated by Frederick Horniman's son Emslie Horniman . In 1999 the museum was redeveloped and re-opened in 14 June 2002.

CUE building

The Horniman Museum contains the CUE (Centre for Understanding the Environment) building. This opened in 1996 and was designed by local architects Architype. The building has a grass roof and was contructed from sustainable materials. It also incorporates passive ventilation.

Collections

The Horniman specialises in anthropology, natural history and musical instruments and has a collection of 350,000 objects. The ethnography and music collections have Designated status .

The Horniman Museum is a Non-Departmental Public Body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Grounds

The museum is set in 16 acres (65,000 m²) of gardens which include the following features:

• A Grade II listed conservatory
• A bandstand from 1912
• A small animal enclosure
• A nature trail

External links

• Official web site
• London Open House factsheet on the CUE building