Explore 22 objects spanning 4.6 billion years of Earth's history.
Each exhibit tells a remarkable story and has been chosen for its scientific, historical and cultural importance. From a meteorite and moon rock, a dodo to Darwin's pigeons, and the intricate Blaschka glass models, uncover some of the most extraordinary specimens in our collection.
Star specimens and exhibits
- beautiful butterflies collected by Alfred Russel Wallace
- original images from John James Audubon's Birds of America book
- Sir Hans Sloane's beautifully carved nautilus shell
- an emperor penguin egg collected during Robert Falcon Scott's Antarctic expedition
- and don't miss our visitors' favourite, Guy the gorilla
Explore the galleries with the Museum map
Find out how to get around with the Museum map. There are four zones to discover.
Showcasing nature's secrets
Discover the objects that shook our world view and inspired new insights, in a collaboration between the Museum and Google Arts & Culture.
Discover the collections
-
CollectionsHidden Treasures: Season two of our behind-the-scenes live streams
Explore our collections and discover some of the many specimens you won't see on a regular visit to the Museum.
-
DinosaursThe Cretaceous Period: What was Earth like before dinosaurs went extinct?
The Cretaceous Period is famous for ending with a massive asteroid impact, but what was our planet like in the millions of years before that?
-
NewsThe first known dinosaur egg? A new discovery from the Museum's collection
A serendipitous discovery revealed that a beautiful mineral has been hiding a secret for over 170 years.
29 March 2023 -
Science newsNatural history museums around the globe contain over 1.1 billion objects
The specimens and objects held in museums around the world represent an astonishing resource.
23 March 2023
