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
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Science news
Rediscovering the world’s largest cormorant
The spectacled cormorant went extinct almost 200 years ago – but almost nothing is known about its life.
19 March 2024 -
Science news
New pterosaur from Skye reveals the hidden diversity of the Middle Jurassic
Discovered in Scotland, Ceoptera evansae has been named as a new species of pterosaur.
6 February 2024 -
Collections
Whale oil and half an inch of dust: our bowhead whale gets a clean
The whale hall at the Natural History Museum undergoes a deep clean.
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Collections
Our LGBTQ+ video tour
Take a virtual tour of the Natural History Museum and explore the astonishing diversity of the natural world.