Exhibitions at the Museum of London are always beautifully designed, and Sherlock Holmes: the man who never lived and will never die is no different. You sneak in through a secret door embedded into a ‘bookcase’, and immediately enter the world of Holmes’ London. There are films of London from the 1880s, all swirling crowds of franticly rushing people, traffic jams and advertising. There is a huge array of photographs, maps and paintings of nineteenth century London. One feature bound to excite Holmes nerds is the maps with Holmes’ journeys in each of Conan Doyle’s novels traced out with coloured string, matched with high-speed films retracing his steps today.
Image may be NSFW.
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I learnt something very important – a hansom cab was a two-wheeled carriage drawn by a single horse. I had always imagined they had two horses, and will have to revise my mental picture of the nineteenth century accordingly. Hansoms could move at astonishing speed, which probably accounted for the huge numbers of people killed in traffic accidents in the pre-car era.
The exhibition also features props and costumes from some of the many Holmes films and tv shows, including *gasp* Benedict Cumberbatch’s coat. It also features all sorts of Holmes-related objects: disguises, guns, nineteenth century drug paraphernalia, violins, dressing gowns and finger print kits. There is some wonderful interpretation, including Holmes’ deductions about the wearers of certain hats or shoes, along with annotated examples of the clothing in question. In a nod to the instagram generation you can pose with a deerstalker hat, pipe and magnifying glass, or in front of the door to 221B Baker Street.
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The outfit worn by Holmes in a 1965 film
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Cumberbatch as the modern incarnation of Holmes, in that wonderful swishy coat
The exhibition won’t really tell you much about Conan Doyle, or about Holmes, that you don’t already know. But it is a beautiful, fun way to immerse yourself in Holmes’ world.
The exhibition runs until 12th April 2015.
