Hintze Hall
Walk beneath the largest animal on Earth and explore dozens of other exhibits representing 4.5 billion years of natural history.
Hintze Hall is the gateway to the Museum's collections and galleries.
Inside it, you can wander among meteorites, mammals, fish, birds, minerals, plants and insects, and hear stories about the people whose work and ideas have shaped the Museum.
'Like the blue whale, these beautiful and intricate objects from nature are like wonderful works of art that showcase the incredible uniqueness and diversity of our natural world.' - Lorraine Cornish, Head of Conservation
Star specimens and exhibits
- a 25-metre blue whale skeleton, suspended in the air
- an American mastodon, the elephant’s Ice Age relative
- seaweeds, crucial to marine food chains and habitats, in an intricate underwater-forest arrangement
- a rock as old as the solar system
- an Atlantic blue marlin
- a 122-129-million-year-old Mantellisaurus, one of the most complete dinosaur fossils ever discovered in the UK
- a 120-year-old, 300-kilogramme Turbinaria coral
- fossil trees spanning hundreds of millions of years of the planet's history
- a 2.5-tonne banded iron formation recording the birth of life on Earth
Take an audio-guided tour narrated by Sir David Attenborough
How to find this gallery
Hintze Hall is in the Green Zone. It has a large area on the Ground Floor with a balcony surrounding it.
Experience the blue whale
Explore the whale's rich history in an interactive online experience.
The whale story: watch the series
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CollectionsOn the trail of the Wexford blue whale
Trace the 126-year journey of the blue whale from the sea to Museum.
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Collections
Examining the blue whale: the move begins
Go behind the scenes as the first bones are taken down from the blue whale skeleton.
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Collections
Whale move: conservation commences
Watch as our blue whale is moved into storage and the conservators start their work.
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Collections
The blue whale: a three-year labour of love
Join Museum scientists as they reflect on becoming part of this specimen's giant story.
Hintze Hall's hidden masterpiece
Discover the ceiling of Hintze Hall with an interactive gigapixel photo, in collaboration with Google Arts & Culture.
Discover Hintze Hall's exhibits
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CollectionsThe giant sequoia: preserving a slice of natural history
How do you conserve an ancient wedge of giant tree? With solvent, buckets of resin and a lot of patience.
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CollectionsThe Imilac meteorite: a gem as old as the solar system
Dr Caroline Smith sheds light on the secrets this rock holds about the formation of our own planet.
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CollectionsMissouri Leviathan: The making of an American mastodon
From touring spectacle to Museum star: hear the hidden history behind this ancient mammal skeleton.
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NewsMantellisaurus: 3D-scanning one of the most complete British dinosaurs
A usually inaccessible dinosaur will be available to researchers around the world.
20 August 2019
An event you'll never forget
Hire the magnificent Hintze Hall for your wedding, party or private event.