To mark the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death, we've found objects from the museum's Tudor and Stuart collection that are mentioned in Shakespeare's plays and poems. These personal possessions give a glimpse of everyday life in Shakespeare's London.

In or about 1592, William Shakespeare (1564-1616) travelled from his home town of Stratford-upon-Avon to further his career as an actor and playwright in London. How long he stayed in the capital is unknown, but records suggest that he moved around from lodging to lodging, living at various times in Southwark, Bishopsgate, Blackfriars and Cripplegate, before finally purchasing a mortgage for a property at Puddle Wharf near the Blackfriars Theatre in 1613.

One of the remarkable features of Shakespeare’s literary output is his facility with language: his rich vocabulary and use of colloquial speech – sometimes quite literally, the London voice. The plays are sprinkled with references to the stuff of everyday life and for the playgoers who enjoyed the ‘two hours traffic of our stage’, such allusions must have had particular meaning and significance.