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Natural History Museum, London

Natural History Museum
Entrance to Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 - geograph.org.uk - 1034304.jpg
Natural History Museum, London is located in Central London
Natural History Museum, London
Location within Central London
Established 1881; 136 years ago (1881)
Location Kensington & Chelsea, London, SW7
United Kingdom
Coordinates 51°29′46″N 0°10′35″W / 51.495983°N 0.176372°W / 51.495983; -0.176372
Visitors 5,284,023 (2015)
Director Michael Dixon
Public transit access London Underground South Kensington
Website nhm.ac.uk

The Natural History Museum in London is a museum of natural history that exhibits a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history. It is one of three major museums on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, the others being the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. The Natural History Museum's main frontage, however, is on Cromwell Road.

The museum is home to life and earth science specimens comprising some 80 million items within five main collections: botany, entomology, mineralogy, paleontology and zoology. The museum is a world-renowned centre of research specialising in taxonomy, identification and conservation. Given the age of the institution, many of the collections have great historical as well as scientific value, such as specimens collected by Charles Darwin. The museum is particularly famous for its exhibition of dinosaur skeletons and ornate architecture—sometimes dubbed a cathedral of nature—both exemplified by the large Diplodocus cast which dominates the vaulted central hall. The Natural History Museum Library contains extensive books, journals, manuscripts, and artwork collections linked to the work and research of the scientific departments; access to the library is by appointment only. The museum is recognised as the pre-eminent centre of natural history and research of related fields in the world.

Although commonly referred to as the Natural History Museum, it was officially known as British Museum (Natural History) until 1992, despite legal separation from the British Museum itself in 1963. Originating from collections within the British Museum, the landmark Alfred Waterhouse building was built and opened by 1881, and later incorporated the Geological Museum. The Darwin Centre is a more recent addition, partly designed as a modern facility for storing the valuable collections.


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