Why Natural History Museums Matter

 Museums are a critical part of the cultural scene around the world. While many people are most familiar with art museums, which shed light on creative voices past and present, other kinds of museums are just as essential. Natural history museums, in particular, are extremely valuable, as they play a role in our understanding of various aspects of human history, including biodiversity and environmental change. Additionally, such museums preserve important natural specimens, thus serving as documentarians of animals, plants, and other natural elements like rocks and minerals, all to the benefit of the public and the research community.

Throughout the Renaissance and into the Enlightenment, natural science flourished, leading to a growing awareness of the natural world and its importance. Early museums such as the National Museum of Natural History in Paris included natural specimens in their collections, demonstrating a shift in the cultural value of the natural world. Established in 1635, the Parisian landmark pioneered the cultural movement to launch natural history museums around the world.

Today, the natural specimens found in natural history museums exceed 2 billion in number. Specimen types comprise earth science artifacts such as fossils, rocks, and minerals. They also cover life science studies like botanical and animal specimens, which can include taxidermy samples as well as wet collections.

The most famous natural history museums include the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC, and the Natural History Museum in London. Their collections span a wide range of historical eras and specimen types. The American Museum of Natural History in New York is the largest museum of its kind. Housing over 30 million specimens, the museum contains several dinosaur displays, like the huge Titanosaur cast, which welcomes visitors upon their entry.

Meanwhile, in South America, the Brazil National Museum boasts another impressive specimen: the 12,000-year-old Luzia. Luzia is the oldest human skeleton from the Americas. While the museum lost millions of its specimens following a fire, it still preserves countless dinosaur skeletons and valuable records chronicling ancient native languages.

In addition to their rich educational and public outreach initiatives, these museums are vital in facilitating research projects. Natural history museum collections provide researchers with extensive resources to conduct historical, biological, geographic, and anthropological studies. Unlike data procured in laboratories or through field projects, museum specimens offer a unique glance at natural species in specific places at distinct points in time.

While photographic and video evidence of historical events help researchers, they merely portray a bygone era. On the other hand, natural specimens can be a gateway into the past, one from which scientists can extract priceless DNA samples.

Genetic data can guide researchers to map population changes. For example, researchers have linked the effect of certain pesticides to the reproductive decline of bird species like brown pelicans and peregrine falcons.

Alternatively, tissue samples from natural history museum specimens can assist researchers in studies focusing on how diseases spread. Museum specimens often serve as the main basis for studies investigating evolutionary patterns, epidemiological trends of infectious diseases, and ecological distributions.