In pictures: Technology's hidden past

Other more unusual objects are also hoarded inside the hangars.

"When you look at the Science Museum collections you'll notice that some are quite eclectic because they reflect a curator's interest in a particular area," said Miss Leskard.

One of the more niche collections includes a vast number of blocks of concrete.

"The man who collected them was known as Concrete Bob," she said.

The collection includes one of the world's first examples of reinforced concrete, from 1899.