The short reign of Edward VII and the years that followed it up until the outbreak of war in 1914, are known as the Edwardian period. It was a time of great social change stamped with its own particular character; simultaneously both decadent and optimistic, but full of hope as the new century began. Many people considered this period to be the Age of Optimism. So many things had been invented so quickly– ‘the electric Hoover, the safety razor, the teddy bear and the paper cup’ that it was thought that war would be averted due to the surplus of helpful inventions.

This exhibition features some of the objects invented during the Edwardian age, although some of them may not actually date fom the period 1901 - 1910.