Hidden gems of London: Exhibition of bus stations and housing estates shows beauty of city's surprising architectural treasures Lesser Known Architecture exhibition is on display at the Design Museum It features two housing estates, a bus station, cemetery and even a subway When most Britons think of their favourite buildings in London, it's likely that the Houses of Parliament, Whitehall or Buckingham Palace may well come up. But a new exhibition is highlighting the beauty of some of the capital's lesser known and unexpected treasures, such as the graceful arches hidden inside Stockwell bus garage. The free Lesser Known Architecture exhibition celebrates the city's extraordinary architecture, which many Londoners may have seen on their daily commutes, but never really noticed before. Secret city: Stockwell Bus Garage, which boasted the largest unsupported area under one roof in Europe when it was constructed in 1952, features in the Lesser Known Architecture exhibition Leading architecture critics nominated ten buildings, structures and subways they believe are all too often overlooked and forgotten. Curated by Elias Redstone, the exhibition at the Design Museum presents an alternative architectural map of the city. Instead of palaces and stately homes, the show focuses on bus stations and housing estates. Each site has been photographed by Theo Simpson and his images will be displayed as a series of single colour offset prints in the Design Museum Café and Tank. While many people will have heard of Highgate Cemetery, a lesser known graveyard has made the lesser known architecture list. Nunhead Cemetery is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries in London but is perhaps the least famous and celebrated of them. Nunhead Cemetery, located in south London, was consecrated in 1840 and opened by the London Necropolis Company as All Saints' Cemetery. It is now a Local Nature Reserve. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder: The Brownfield Estate in Tower Hamlets, which was built in 1965, is one of two housing blocks to feature in the show A more surprising addition to the list is the modernist housing complex Bevin Court. The building was constructed during the post World War II period of austerity on the site of the bomb-destroyed Holford Square in Finsbury and is one of two residential estates to be nominated. The other is the Brownfield Estate, a large residential complex in Tower Hamlets which is dominated by 27-storey housing block built in 1965. Another surprising nominee is cabmen's shelters, the green garden-shed-like buildings which have been dotted around the city since 1874 so taxi drivers can buy 'good and wholesome refreshments at moderate prices'. Today there are only 13 cabmen's shelters remaining in London. The Victorian Crystal Palace Subway is another 'hidden gem' to be nominated. Built in 1865, the walkway was constructed to allow visitors to the Crystal Palace building, where large exhibitions were held, to pass from the railway station to the grounds without dirtying their fineries by crossing the muddy roads. Tradition: This is one of 13 Cabmen's Shelters left in London. The small garden-shed like structures were erected around the city in 1874 to provide affordable beverages for taxi drivers The Crystal Palace was destroyed by fire in 1936 and the subway is one of the last surviving remnants. Mail Rail, the Post Office's railway hidden beneath the streets of London, has also made the list. The six-and-a-half-mile-long underground track was used to transport mail between sorting offices in Whitechapel and Paddington from 3 December 1927 until 31 May 2003. London's historical transport system appears to have dominated the list with London Underground Arcades also making an appearance. Other sites to make the top ten include the Occidental Oil Refinery, Welbeck Street Car Park and, of course, Stockwell Bus Garage. Stockwell Garage was designed by Adie, Button and Partners, with the engineer A E Beer, and was opened in 1952. Space-age: The ultra-modern looking Welbeck Street Car Park in central London has made the top ten The garage provides 73,350 sq ft of unobstructed parking space and could originally house 200 buses. At the time of construction it was the largest unsupported area under one roof in Europe. Since 1988 the garage has been a Grade II listed building reflecting its importance in post-war architectural and engineering history. Each nominator has written an overview of their buildings historical and design credentials that will be published in the accompanying journal, Lesser Known Architecture, Vol. 1: London. The Lesser Known Architecture photographs will also be produced as limited edition prints available to purchase from the Design Museum Shop. Lesser Known Architecture is part of the London Festival of Architecture 2013.