The Natural History Museum in London is one of the largest museums of its kind in the world. Once part of the British Museum, it now houses over 70 million exhibits in five large sections - botany, entomology, mineralogy, palaeontology and zoology. It is an internationally recognised research centre known for its work in taxonomy, identification and conservation of exhibits.
The Natural History Museum was based on Sir Hans Sloan's collection, which formed part of the general collection of the British Museum. However, it was neglected, stored in inappropriate conditions or sold off, until Richard Owen became the caretaker of the natural history section in 1856. He insisted on separation from the British Museum, and a separate building was built for the Natural History Museum in South Kensington and the collections were moved there. However, the museum did not formally separate from the British Museum until 1963, and the words "British Museum" did not disappear from the official name of the Natural History Museum until 1992.
Outside and inside, the museum building is clad in terracotta tiles with images of plants and animals, both extant and extinct - the west and east wings respectively. This was done at Owen's personal request - as a kind of objection to Darwin's theory of natural selection and the origin of species. In modern times, the Darwin Centre and the Attenborough Studio, named after David Attenborough, the famous biologist and television presenter of programmes about the living world of the Earth, have been added to the museum complex.
The most famous exhibits in the collection include a 32 metre replica of a Diplodocus skeleton, a moving model of a Tyrannosaurus, a life-size blue whale and its skeleton, and an eight metre giant squid, which had to have a special tank built to store its carcass.
The mineralogical collection is presented as it was in the 19th century - a kind of monument to the museum art and science of the past. The Natural History Museum conducts various educational programmes for schoolchildren.
As with all public museums in the UK, admission to the Natural History Museum is free.
