Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons

I had visions of this being a rather scary and gory place to visit, expecting displays of preserved body parts and scary instruments, but no– nothing like that! I was glad that this was open for Doors Open Day, and delighted to learn that I can go back and look at their rare books again (the main library is open to the general public).
The building itself is a bit of an architectural gem, wonderful cornice, well maintained décor and interesting fine art which adorns the walls. The 2 level old library is a particular highlight, with little gold steps leading to the top level.
The staff who were around the building were really helpful; they had that tricky balance met where they are happy to let you gaze in silence or answer questions too.

Normally closed to the public it was opened for Doors Open Day. It started in 1855, has 12 000 members around the world and holds over 35k publications.
On a daily basis doctors wishing to specialise attend lectures and exams here. There’s a lecture theatre and several libraries, I enjoyed reading about David Livingstone but I couldn’t take my eyes off some of the art on the walls. I made a wee video
which shows some of it.
As it’s really three buildings merged into one there are a lot of nooks & crannies to explore but sadly they weren’t all open to the public today :(