Things to do / Travel Guide
Address:Central Park W and 79th St.
New York, New York
Tel:
(212) 313-7278
See a life-sized model of a blue whale and a massive Cape York meteorite! Take a field trip to the moon or explore the Hall of Biodiversity. Whatever you prefer, this center of natural history, science, and technology will satisfy lovers of science, nature or just the generally curious.
The American Museum of Natural History was founded in 1869. Before the construction of the present complex, it was housed in the old Arsenal building in Central Park, with a triumphal Roman entrance on Central Park West. Today, the Museum is filled with fabulous natural history and anthropological collections. Kids and adults alike are sure to love such exhibits as the collection of African, Asian and North American mammals, the 62 foot carved and painted war canoe from the Pacific Northwest, and the largest blue sapphire in the world, the "Star of India." The museum boasts over 32 million specimens which are always on rotation as well as a Planetarium and an IMAX theater. In addition, the Library at the American Museum of Natural History has grown into one of the world's great natural history collections, great for those thirsty for more knowledge.
If gazing at the massive T-Rex has made you hungry, check out the outstanding food choices at Café on One, which serves gourmet fare catering to adult diners, or try the Museum Food Court Gold Nugget Café, or the juice and tapas bars. Getting here is easy. You can just take the B or C train to 81st Street. Alternatively, two blocks west of the Museum the 1 and 9 trains stop at Broadway and West 79th Street.
From American Museum of Natural History - New York City, NY:
The American Museum of Natural History was established in 1869 in a world very different from today's. Even by the late 19th century, we did not have a firm knowledge of many of Earth's land regions and oceans, the diversity of cultures outside of western societies, and the essential history and organization of life on Earth. Darwin's revolutionary Origin of Species had been published only ten years before. It would be 30 more years before the structure of the atom would be revealed and the laws of heredity disclosed, 40 years before Einstein would share his theories of relativity, and 132 years before the entire three billion nucleotides of the human genome would be mapped.