Natural History Museum, London, UK
– Cathedral of Nature

The Natural History Museum, London, UK was founded in 1881 in South Kensington when it was decided that the collections of natural specimens at the British Museum needed their own home.

The collections were moved to a large new building which allowed them to be displayed and cared for in a much better way than they had been in previous years.

There are five main collections at the Natural History Museum; Mineralogy, Botany, Zoology, Entomology, and Palaeontology.

The museum also has extensive collections of scientific literature about the natural world, and its library of such works is unparalleled.

One of the most iconic and popular objects at the Natural History Museum is the 105 foot long replica of a diplodocus, affectionately known as “Dippy”.

This dinosaur was given to the museum by Andrew Carnegie in 1905.

Another very popular exhibit is the scale model and skeleton of a blue whale in the Large Mammals Hall, and you can also see the skeletal remains of the River Thames Whale that got lost and stranded itself in the London river in 2006.

The Darwin Centre at the Natural History Museum is home to the more than 10 million preserved and dry specimens.

Perhaps the Darwin Centre’s most famous preserved resident is “Archie”; a 24 foot giant squid found in a fishing net off the Falkland Islands in 2004.

In 1986, the Natural History Museum took over the holdings of the Geological Museum of the British Geological Survey.

The mineralogy collections are extensive, and you can experience an active volcano and an earthquake, as well.

The Attenborough Studio is a relatively new addition to the Natural History Museum.

It is a joint venture between the museum and the BBC’s Natural History Unit and is a high tech studio where educational events such as web casts and lectures can take place.

The Natural History Museum, London, UK has come a long way from its modest beginnings to become a world class destination.