The Foundling Museum

Not many people know about this museum which presents an interesting part of local history - it is devoted to the Foundling Hospital, the first home for abandoned children established in Britain. The institution was opened in 1739 by the philanthropist Thomas Coram. The collection contains paintings and sculptures by well-known British 18th-century artists such as William Hogarth, Thomas Gainsborough, and Joshua Reynolds. The museum also displays furniture, photographs, coins, jewellery and other artefacts.