Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
The Royal Mail was already long established by the time this Georgian Mail Coach was in use (photo by Rakshita Patel)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
A wonderfully ornate early Victorian pillar box (photo by Rakshita Patel)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Some early 20th century post office equipment (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
The Gower-Bell telephone was very sophisticated (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
All you need to know about sending a telegram - and of course Sherlock Holmes did know it all! (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Visitors to the Museum can try it for themselves (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Visitors can also send messages via pneumatic tubes - though something went wrong when Bob Ellis tried... (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
In the early 20th century the internal combustion engine took over from the horse (photo by Rakshita Patel)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Here's that same early 20th century Mail Van from the other side (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
On the opposite side of Phoenix Place, deep beneath the Sorting Office, is the narrow gauge Mail Rail. The train is ready to leave (photo by Rakshita Patel)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
It's a thrilling journey through narrow tunnels (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
At certain stops along the route the story of the British postal service took us through the decades (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Back beyond the 1950s to the 1920s (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
We're not sure whether the dartboard was part of the official equipment (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
We saw how the mail was handled (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
And how the Post Office Railway developed (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Further and deeper we went (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Love letters... (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Formal communications...
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
... The Post Office Railway carried 4,000,000 letters a day - amazing! (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
After lunch, our Chairman David Jones introduced the Museum's Curator, Jessica Woolf (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Jessica (who is also the Society's former Volunteer Archivist) gave us the lowdown on the Postal Museum (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
The Museum has a long history (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Jessica and her staff have many treasures to look after (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
A century or so ago the Muniment Room was where official and legal documents were stored (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
Some items have come from private collections (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
In the 1960s Mr R M Phillips donated his unique stamp collection - seated at the desk is the Postmaster-General, Anthony Wedgwood Benn (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
An essential part of the Museum is Mail Rail (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
You could call it the original Crossrail (photo by Roger Johnson)
Sherlock Holmes Society of London:
It ran for 6.5 miles, east to west (photo by Roger Johnson)
