In deepest, darkest south-east London, there lies a strange and almost forgotten monument to times past. Walk north from Forest Hill station and you will see its crumbling facade. Enter the dingy interior, breathe in the stale air, and marvel at the mysterious collection of ancient relics. Gaze in wonder at these eccentric remnants of history; these dusty, dying survivors of a world long gone.
Or, just walk straight past the Wetherspoons and head to the Horniman Museum. It was founded in 1901 by Frederick John Horniman, a tea merchant and philanthropist. (His birth name was Smith, but he changed it as a gift to future generations of schoolchildren.)
Horniman collected some 30,000 artefacts over the course of his travels, including stuffed animal specimens, tribal masks, musical instruments, works of art, and fridge magnet bottle openers. He built the museum to store his collection, after his wife pointed out that there wasn't enough Kallax shelving in every Ikea nationwide to store 30,000 dead marmosets and sitars.
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