Museum of the Home

I always look forward to a trip out with my friends Stewart and Kerri. This time Stu suggested we visit the Museum of the Home in the Hoxton area of London. The museum is located in the Former Geffrye Almshouses, built through a bequest fromSir Robert Geffrye, a merchant, Lord Mayor of London and Master of the Ironmongers Company. Because he had some involvement in transporting enslaved men and women to the British West Indies in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, the museum is trying to downplay his name and move a statue that sits above the entrance to the almshouse’s chapel. We had two excellent guides throughout the tour of the almshouses.

Almshouses were built for poor widow (and some men) that were asociated with various trades or guilds who built them. Residents were given very basic furniture and household items in the early years and a small stipend.

Above are some pictures of what the early almshouse room, allocated to a woman or a couple would have looked like.

As time moved forward, the type of person needing the almshouses changed and by the 19th century, housemaids, nurses, former nannies etc., were moving in to somewhat improved conditions.

Below are pictures of the improved later accomodations, including indoor plumbing and clothes washing facilities.

Underneath the row of Almshouses which each contained for “units,” the museum of the home displays typical rooms and furnishing from the 18th through 20th centuries. It too, is worth a visit. Wonderful gardens are also part of the property. Below are some pictures of them.

More Wigmore

Simon Trpcheski, a Macedonian pianist, was appearing for a 25th anniversary of his first appearance at Wigmore Hall. He played Tchaikovsky’s “Autumn Song” from “The Seasons Opus 37a. It was an incredibly beautiful performance of a song that was truly evocative of Autumn. His second piece was Ravel’s “Vaises nobles et sentinentales.” (Noble and Sentimental Waltzes) which was a perfect companion for the first piece. For his third piece, he returned to Tchaikovsky “Nutcracker Suite (arranged by Mikhail Pietnev). It was delightful hearing this familiar away from Christmas. He concluded with two encore pieces that were received with great delight.

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