The Natural History Museum in South Kensington will open a second-floor gallery that has been closed to the public since 1943, hosting a new free exhibition titled 'Nature and Us' starting September 16. The gallery, located in the Waterhouse building, was last accessible during World War II before being repurposed to house the museum's displaced botanical collection after herbarium damage during the war.
Exhibition features 50 objects spanning 400,000 years
The 'Nature and Us' exhibition will display 50 objects that explore humanity's evolving relationship with the natural world. Among the artefacts are a Victorian-era skeleton of a monk seal, a hand-axe dating back 400,000 years, and a mini model of one of the Crystal Palace dinosaurs. A bryozoan-encrusted Star Wars toy from the 1980s and a replica jaw of one of Britain's earliest known domesticated dogs, dating back around 14,300 years, will also be on display amid the gallery's original wooden herbarium cabinets.
Gallery history and NHM150 campaign
The vacant space was previously home to the museum's skeleton collection before being used to display mammals. Damage to the NHM's herbarium during World War II led to the room being repurposed to house the displaced botanical collection, at which point it was closed to the public. It has remained that way ever since, according to the museum. The exhibition will serve as a trial run for the revived exhibition space, which will reopen permanently in 2029. Its reinstatement as a public venue is part of the NHM150 campaign, which pledges to open a brand new or revitalised gallery every year until 2031.
Free entry and 18-month run
'Nature and Us' will run for 18 months and entry will be completely free, according to the Natural History Museum. The exhibition debuts on September 16, marking the first time the public can access the gallery in over 80 years.
