The National Maritime Museum (NMM) was formally established by Act of Parliament in 1934 and opened to the public by King George VI on 27 April 1937. It includes the 17th-century Queen’s House and, from the 1950s, the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. There is also a small museum at Cotehele Quay on the Tamar, Cornwall, with the NMM/National Trust sailing barge 'Shamrock', and the 'Valhalla’ ships’ figurehead collection on Tresco, Isles of Scilly. The collections comprise about 2.48 million items, many on loan to museums elsewhere in Britain. The public galleries at Greenwich display a thematically arranged selection and the remainder are accessible for public interest and research in various ways. From December 2002 the majority of the NMM small-boat collection will be on display at the new National Maritime Museum, Cornwall, at Falmouth.
The Museum is funded by Government with additional income derived from trading activity and sponsorship. Entry to all NMM's sites at Greenwich is free but charges are made for some special exhibitions. The Museum's objectives and targets are outlined in its current Government Funding Agreement.