The world of 'design' covers everything from art to tech to textiles. It's where creativity meets practicality. Scroll on, and use the arrows to point, click, and drag your way through 5 museums around the world celebrating the aesthetics and the ingenuity of design.
The V&A, as it's familiarly known, was founded in 1852 and houses the world's largest collection of sculpture, design, and decorative arts (around 2.3 million objects). The museum sits on London's Exhibition Row, along with the Natural History Museum and Science Museum.
The museum's sculpture halls are like no other. The carefully crafted facsimiles and plaster casts in these rooms have educated and inspired artists for over 150 years. But some of its holdings are more recent: in 2015 the museum acquired Nguyen Ha Dong’s app Flappy Bird.
Here you can wander the halls of Italy's Museum of Design in that most famed city of fashion, Milano. Click your way through a timeline of tasteful modern marvels!
Denmark is recognised around the world for setting high standards and creating innovative objects, from LEGO bricks to Arne Jacobsen's Egg chair. Many Danish designers find their imaginations fired by the objects held at the Designmuseum Danmark.
For students of design, the museum is invaluable. Among the physical collection of posters, chairs, and household objects, the library holds a fully annotated and illustrated database of every single piece of furniture made in Denmark between 1900 and 2000.
It always helps when the building itself is a masterpiece. In 2016 the Design Museum moved from a banana warehouse on the banks of the Thames to its new home in the former Commonwealth Institute in Kensington, not far from the V&A.
Standing in the atrium of London's Design Museum, you can fully appreciate the stunning hyperbolic paraboloid roof, which soars over the open space. The upper floors hold the permanent collection, while downstairs are temporary exhibitions.
The sleek metal curves of the Dongdaemun Design Plaza are the unmistakable mark of the late British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid, who emphasised the 'transparency, porousness, and durability' of the structure, as well as its ecological features.
The undulating walls and bright, white interior make it look like something from A Space Odyssey. These otherworldly spaces contain the exhibition hall, conference hall, design museum, design lab, and other public event spaces.
You've heard of the Ancient Egyptians, but did you know their history stretches all the way back to around 6000 years BCE?
Some surviving architecture can still be seen, including the iconic pyramids and the Great Sphinx, still standing strong and proud today, 4500 years later!
In a collision of ancient and contemporary, you can use Street View to journey back to Ancient Egypt and take a look at five spectacular views of the pyramids of Giza. Scroll on to start your journey...
Also known as known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops, the Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest and largest pyramid in the Giza complex in Cairo, Egypt.
This structure is the second largest of the pyramids of Giza. It holds the tomb of the Egyptian Pharaoh Khafre.
This pyramid is the third largest out of the three main pyramids in the Giza complex. It is thought to house the tomb of the Pharaoh Menkaure.
Next to the Pyramid of King Menkaure, you can find some smaller pyramids known as the Pyramids of Queens.
Among the pyramids stands the Great Sphinx of Giza. This structure was built in the shape of a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human.
Teetering on the edge of a cliff, and sheltered by a natural rock arch, Predjama Castle would be difficult to take in even the best circumstances. In the 15th Century the castle was besieged, after the cruel lord of the castle, Erasmus of Lueg, offended the Holy Roman Emperor.
During the long siege, Erasmus had a secret tunnel dug through the cave and out the other side. He used this to allow resupplies to reach the castle and his troops to pillage the local land. According to legend, the siege only ended when Erasmus was killed by his own men.
Often claimed to be the home of both Vlad the Impaler and Bram Stoker's Dracula, historians and literary critics aren't so sure, but everyone can agree that Bran Castle in Transylvania, Romania does look very haunting and dramatic, and it certainly holds secrets…
The twisting maze of rooms hides a secret passage from the first floor to the third floor, which would have allowed frightened officials to make a hasty exit in an emergency. The passageway was hidden behind a fake fireplace and was only discovered in the 1920s.
The Tudor mansion of Coughton Court in Warwickshire, England, was built by the Throckmorton family in the mid 1500s. The Throckmortons were Catholics in a newly Protestant country. They faced persecution for practising their faith, but they refused to abandon it.
Instead, they had a 'priest hole' built into Coughton Court; a secret room for hiding altars, crosses, and visiting priests, if they were raided by the authorities. Many rich Catholic families around England did the same, and many lives were saved by these secret chambers.
In the seaside village of Rye, England stands The Olde Bell. This quaint, historic pub is the perfect place for a pint of ale, but in the 1730s you might not find yourself welcome; the pub was used by the Hawkhurst Gang, and like any good outfit, they had a getaway plan…
A secret tunnel led from The Olde Bell under a street and a couple of houses, to The Mermaid Inn. If the long arm of the law came knocking, the Hawkhurst Gang could move themselves and their smuggled brandy and tobacco out of reach.
The high walls of the Passetto di Borgo mean it's hardly secret, but it has saved the life of at least two popes. This crenelated raised walkway runs for 1km from the Papal apartments in the Vatican City, to the Castel Sant'Angelo - the formidable fortress in the centre of Rome.
The Passetto was built in 1277 by Pope Nicholas III, though thankfully he didn't have to use it. It was however used by Pope Alexander VI in 1494 and later by Pope Clement VII, after his bodyguard were massacred during the 1527 Sack of Rome.
At the other end is the Castel Sant'Angelo. Originally an ancient Roman Mausoleum, this enormous stone structure was turned into a fortified Papal palace and prison. Today, this imposing building is a museum.
Not to be outdone by mere Popes, the Medici family of Florence had their own secret passage built in 1565 to connect their home in the Palazzo Pitti with the seat of government in the Palazzo Vecchio.
The architect Giorgio Vasari designed the raised and covered walkway, which is now known as the Vasari Corridor. The passage actually punches through several buildings on its winding way across the city, over the Arno river, and into the centre of Florence.
After taking a sharp right on the north bank and a detour via the Uffizi (then the offices of the city magistrates), the corridor takes one final leap over the Via Della Ninna and into the Palazzo Vecchio. With this elaborate passageway, the paranoid Medici could move safely.
Privacy was not an option at the Palace of Versailles. During the reign of the Bourbon Kings, between 3000 and 10,000 courtiers and staff present on any day - there were few places to hide from prying eyes. For pleasure-obsessed monarchs, this was a bit of a problem.
Perhaps its no surprise that many private rooms contained hidden passages to allow special guests discreet access at all hours of the day. Here, in the Queen's Bedchamber, is a secret doorway with a particularly special story…
To the left of the Queen's bed is the faint outline of a door. It's through this passage that Marie Antoinette escaped barefoot when the palace was stormed by a crowd of poor market women on the 5 October 1789, in the early days of the French Revolution.
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