The British Museum, located in the Bloomsbury area of London, United Kingdom, is one of the world's oldest and most eminent museums, dedicated to human history, art, and culture. Its extensive collection spans over 8 million works, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present. Established in 1753, primarily based on the collections of the physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane, the museum first opened to the public on January 15, 1759. Its notable objects include the Rosetta Stone, the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon in Athens, and the Egyptian mummies. The Museum is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. As one of the first public national museums in the world, The British Museum is an architecturally significant building, with its current Greek Revival façade dating to 1847 and designed by Sir Robert Smirke.