Natural History Museum
Situated next to the science museum on Cromwell Road SW7, the Natural history museum is bursting with historical beauties. The natural history museum is a favourite amongst adults as well as child. There is something for everyone.
Precious Stones
A firm favourite amongst children and adults alike, the museum’s dinosaur collection is a must-see. Wonder amongst the dinosaur fossil gallery, witness the skull of a Triceratops and come face-to-face with a roaring T-Rex! The dinosaur gallery allows you to explore the different time periods that dinosaurs lived, learning through a host of interactive displays.
Dinosaurs
The Natural History Museum houses an impressive collection of rocks, minerals, meteorites and ores. The museum’s mineral collection is one of the most comprehensive collections of its type in the world. There are also an incredible 5,000 individual pieces of meteorites.
Space
The museum’s entrance on Exhibition Road provides visitors with a 360° celestial map across the walls of the Earth hall, providing a fascinating background to the giant metal Earth sculpture at the peak of the escalator. Visitors are immersed in notable objects that tell the story of our planet and solar system. The museum even houses specimens of moon rock and florescent minerals.
Meet Hope
Hope is the icon of the Natural History Museum. Positioned in the entrance hall of the museum’s entrance on Cromwell Road, suspended by steel wires above the heads of all the museum’s visitors. Hope was found beached in 1891 off the coast of Ireland and her skeleton sold to the museum. She is a sight to behold.
Wildlife
The ground floor houses a host of mammals, to include extinct mammals. The lower floor in the museum is dedicated to land mammals whilst the upper gallery is devoted to mammals that live in water. The museum houses fossils and skeletons of extinct animals and specimens of those that are living.
Darwin Centre
The Darwin centre is the newest addition to the Natural History Museum. Inside the ‘cocoon’ lives millions of plant and insect specimens. You can also visit the spirt collection; a collection of specimens preserved in alcohol. The museums earliest collections date back to the early 1700s, including Darwin’s octopus that he took live on HMS Beagle before preserving it in alcohol. The tank room is a must see, a room considered to be the highlight of the collection because of its incredible size and variety of species. Another must-see is the museums rare giant squid specimen, known as Archie. The specimen is 8.62m long, proving to be a challenge for scientists to preserve and house within the museum.
Getting there
The museum is situated on Cromwell road, Kensington SW7. The nearest station is South Kensington, served by the District, Piccadilly and Circle lines. The Natural history museum is also accessible by a host of buses. Citymapper is the easiest way to navigate your way to the museum and other destinations across the city.