The Museum of London has begun removing items from display as it prepares to move to a new building following the closure of its previous site.
The London Wall building closed in December and will reopen in West Smithfield in 2026 when it will be known as the London Museum.
A prehistoric flint tranchet adze - a tool similar to an axe - has become the first item to be removed from display.
It marks the beginning of a two-year process to remove 10,000 objects from its galleries as part of the transition.
The Mesolithic adze was a wood-working tool used more than 10,000 years ago to fell trees and shape wood to make shelters and boats.
The process of de-installing items began in January and will see the museum barcode, audit, digitise and pack up each object individually.
Items range from small, delicate archaeological glass to the large-scale objects like the 2012 Olympic Cauldron, Selfridges lift and Victorian Walk.
The Museum of London in West Smithfield will host a festival curated by Londoners in 2025 before reopening as “The London Museum” in 2026.
The Museum of London Docklands remains open to visitors and celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2023.
