Museum

The Queen's House

London
Free to all

This intimate 17th-century villa sitting in the grounds of the National Maritime Museum was designed by Inigo Jones to be fit for a queen.

The building was commissioned by Anne of Denmark, wife of James I. Jones, her chosen designer was, fresh from a three years in Italy and steeped in classical and Renaissance architecture. Anne died soon afterwards, and the building was completed for Charles I’s consort, Henrietta Maria.

As England’s first Classical building, it would have been revolutionary in its day. Leading painters, including Jacob Jordaens and Orazio Gentilleschi, provided decorative panels for the interiors, which were adorned with classical statuary.

The house reopened after refurbishment of the galleries and the famous tulip stairs in time to celebrate its 400th anniversary in 2016. As part of the project Art Fund commissioned Richard Wright to create ornamental, gold leaf design sprawls across the ceiling and gallery walls of the Great Hall. The artist was inspired by the the wrought iron leaves, scrolls and flower heads that can be found on the spiral balustrade on the stairs, as well as other features from the original architecture.

Created with a team of assistants over the course of nine weeks it was painstakingly applied by hand, just as craftspeople in the 17th century would have done. This commission marks a historic moment for Queen's House; not since Gentileschi in the 1630s has any artist created a new permanent work for the ceiling of the Great Hall.

Visitor information

Address

The Queen's House

Romney Road, Greenwich, London, Greater London, SE10 9NF
020 8858 4422

Free to all

Opening times

Daily, 10 am – 5 pm. Pre-booking is essential. Closed 24 – 26 Dec. Please check the website for any planned closures prior to your visit.

Exclusions and safety measures

Keeping everyone safe

Please check: https://www.rmg.co.uk/plan-your-visit/safety-information prior to your visit to find out more.

Visitor information

IndividualTiana Clarke Please note this is an example card and not a reflection of the final product

The more you see, the more we do.

The National Art Pass lets you enjoy free entry to hundreds of museums, galleries and historic places across the UK, while raising money to support them.

Are your sure you want to leave checkout?