Museum of Natural History, London

Opened in April of 1881, the Museum of Natural History in London certainly has something for everyone…no matter what your age! Designed with a Romanesque style, and built with terra cotta tiles, this building makes a grand statement. Known as the British Museum (Natural History) until 1992 this museum boasts over 80 million items on display and sees more than 5 million visitors per year.

We started our visit by entering the museum at the East Entrance, which if the main entrance is busy this is a great alternative. Wandering through the Earth Hall you’ll be greeted by the most complete skeleton of a Stegosaurus ever found. This area is part of the Red Zone which focuses on human evolution, geology, and the history of the planet.

Turning left we made our way into the human evolution area which takes you on a journey that started 7 million years ago when our ancestors first walked the earth. There are fossils, casts of hands and feet, well-preserved skulls, and skeleton reconstructions to gaze at. An extremely fascination area of the museum!

Next it was into the Green Zone where we strolled through the Lasting Impressions exhibits and were awed by the dates of some of the artifacts.

Making our way past the life-size model of the extinct Dodo bird, as well as the skeleton of the Giant sloth we found ourselves in the Hintz Hall.

The Hintze Hall is where you enter from the Central Entrance and it is breath-taking! Looking up you see the 83 foot skeleton of Hope the Blue whale which was bought by the museum in 1891. It was in storage until 1934 when the 221 bones were finally hung in the museum. On the ceiling you will see illustrated panels which are original to the museum and show a variety of plants that grow on the earth. Make sure to also check out the Woolly mammoth skeleton in one of the alcoves off this hall.

Heading out of the Hintze Hall we walked into the Blue Zone to the dinosaur fossils and displays. The museum is well-known for this section and it was where we spent most of our time. Because we visited just before Christmas the moveable T Rex was decked out for the holidays.

The collections in this area are numerous and it is fascinating to wander through here and be awed by the various relics left behind from creatures that used to roam the earth.

The Blue Zone consists of not just dinosaur artifacts, but also replicas of mammals, fishes, amphibians, and reptiles. One of the most popular exhibits is the life-size model of a blue whale.

So far we had explored the main floor so after a snack at the Shake Bar we headed up the main stairs in the Hintze hall to see some of the museum’s treasures in the Cadogan Gallery. Charles Darwin welcomes you as you head up to the next level.

The treasures in the Cadogan Hall have been selected because of their unique importance to the earth’s scientific and cultural history. There are 22 objects here on display including a first edition copy of Darwin’s Origin of Species and an original image from Audubon’s Birds of America…

A piece of a meteorite at approximately 4.6 billion years old and some plants collected on a voyage of Captain James Cook to Australia…

A skeleton of a Dodo bird and the last know specimen of a Great Auk, both birds that met their demise partly due to hunting by humans and destruction of their habitats…

Before heading on with our day we took a quick peek in the minerals gallery which is packed with gems and raw minerals of every kind, including the 9300 carat Blue topaz called the Ostro Stone…the largest one ever found.

This museum is huge and we felt as though we only scratched the surface of everything that there is to see here. There is no entry fee, however donations are accepted and considering all there is to see it would be a shame not to leave something. You can prebook a time to enter which isn’t necessary but can make your entry a bit faster. My one suggestion would be to try and get there when it opens as it does get busier as the day goes on. The museum also hosts exhibitions throughout the year which do require tickets. For more information visit their website here. I enjoyed my visit here so much that I can’t wait to return on a future trip to London.