National Museum of Natural History

Washington, DC: The Museum of Natural History is one of the most popular museums of the Smithsonian Institute. Located along the National Mall in Washington DC, the museum is home to some of the natural wonders of the Earth. Here you can catch a glimpse of the rare Hope Diamond and marvel at life sized dinosaur skeletons in Dinosaur Hall.

The collection of specimens began back in the exploration era of the 1800’s. The National Museum was formed in 1858 and the collections were house in the Smithsonian Institution Building. As the collection grew, they were moved into the National Museum Building in 1881.

In 1911, the collection moved again into the newly created National Museum of Natural History. The museum continued to expand and today houses over 126 million specimens of animals, plants, minerals and other natural artifacts.

The following permanent exhibits are on display:

• Birds of DC; collection of bird species that can be seen in the DC area.
• African Elephant; large elephant located in the Rotunda.
• African Voices; inside look at the people and cultures from Africa.
• Hall of Mammals; collection of over 270 animal species and fossils.
• Discovery Room; hands-on family experiments.
• Dinosaur Hall; skeletons, fossils and more from over 3.5 billion years ago.
• Discovering Rastafari; origins and practices of the Rastafarian movement from Jamaica.
• FossiLab; lab that allows guests to watch the paleontologists at work.
• Sant Ocean Hall; look at sea life from all the Earth’s oceans.
• Butterflies & Plants: Partners in Evolution; process of evolution in relation to plants and butterflies.
• Hall of Geology, Gems and Minerals; various rock formations including the Hope Diamond, gemstones, moon rocks, meteorites.
• Carmen Lucia Ruby; 23.1 carat Burmese ruby.
• Western Cultures Hall; a look into the cultures of Iraq, Egypt, Greece, Rome and more.
• Korea Gallery; Koran ceramics, painting and more from 6th century BC to present day.
• Osteology: Hall of Bones; skeletons from all species of life.
• Insect Zoo; collection of live insects and arthropods.
• Reptiles and Amphibians; preserved reptiles and amphibians.

Only small potion of the overall collection is actually on display for the five million visitors that come to the museum each year. Other artifacts are rotated through temporary exhibits, on traveling exhibits, on loan to other museums or housed in the large storage buildings owned by the museum.

For more photos, visit my Museum of Natural History photo page.

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