# Past Exhibits [### Our Birds: Through a Lens of Hope ](/our-birds-through-lens-hope) A stunning new photographic exhibition in the museum lobby captures North American bird life. The photographs come from Gonzalo Giribet, Professor in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard and Director of the Museum of... description [### Sea Monsters: Wonders of Nature and Imagination ](/sea-monsters) On view through May 17, 2026. Embark on a daring voyage into the depths of human imagination at the Harvard Museum of Natural History’s new special exhibition, Sea Monsters: Wonders of Nature and Imagination. Featuring ancient mariners' maps, literature... description [### In Search of Thoreau’s Flowers: An Exploration of Change and Loss ](/search-thoreau-flowers) In Search of Thoreau’s Flowers: An Exploration of Change and Loss is an immersive multidisciplinary experience that marries art and science through a modern artistic interpretation of Henry David Thoreau’s preserved plants. Thoreau was prolific in his... description [### From the Hands of the Makers ](/hands-makers) Closing April 14, 2024 Over their fifty years creating the Glass Flowers, Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka, father and son, continually experimented with materials and methods that pushed the boundaries of glassworking. Years later, their complex and varied... description [### Lily Simonson: Painting the Deep ](/painting-deep) Lily Simonson Painting the Deep Harvard University Professor Peter Girguis luminescent pigments sea of darkness description [### Microbial Life: A Universe at the Edge of Sight ](/microbial-life-universe-edge-sight) Microbial Life: A Universe at the Edge of Sight Harvard’s Microbial Science Initiative bacteria organisms microbes microbiome description [### Orb-Weavers: Web Masters of the Spider World ](/orb-weavers-web-masters-spider-world)orb-weaving spiders, Arthropod, arachnid, National Science Foundation, evolution of the orb web description [### World in a Drop: Photographic Explorations of Microbial Life ](/world-drop-photographic-explorations-microbial-life) The minuscule ecosystem within a single drop of water is home to an astonishing diversity of organisms busily living out their lives and interconnected by myriad complex relationships. The photographic exhibit World in a Drop is an aesthetic journey into... description [### Next of Kin: Seeing Extinction through the Artist’s Lens ](/next-kin) This exhibition will be closed Tuesday, July 11 from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm Exhibition on view through July 16, 2017 We live in a time when an alarming array of plants and animals struggle to even exist in a world that is increasingly dominated and altered by... description [### Nests & Eggs ](/nests-eggs) May 2007 - August 2008 Nests & Eggs is a HMNH exhibition that draws on the University’s extensive collections. Visitors of all ages will enjoy learning some of the myriad ways that birds nurture and protect their young. The exhibition features stunning... description [### Looking at Animals: Photographs by Henry Horenstein ](/looking-animals-photographs-henry-horenstein) September 28, 2007 - April 27, 2008 With the vision of both an artist and a scientist, acclaimed Boston photographer Henry Horenstein has created haunting images of creatures from land and sea. His photographs offer new ways to see and think about animals... description [### Looking at Leaves: Photographs by Amanda Means ](/looking-leaves-photographs-amanda-means) May 8, 2008 - February 8, 2009 Dramatic black and white images of single leaves by New York photographer Amanda Means are a monument to the remarkable diversity and beauty of nature's botanical forms. These detailed blow-ups, some printed as large as 38 x... description [### Egg & Nest: Photographs by Rosamond Purcell ](/egg-nest-photographs-rosamond-purcell) February 12 - March 15, 2009 World-renowned photographer Rosamond Purcell captures the perfection of eggs and the diversity of bird nests with stunning images from her newest book Egg & Nest. Featuring images of specimens from the ornithological holdings... description [### Dodos, Trilobites, & Meteorites…Treasures of Nature and Science at Harvard ](/dodos-trilobites-meteorites%E2%80%A6treasures-nature-and-science-harvard) Through December 13, 2009 This exhibition showcases never-before-seen treasures from historic expeditions that explored the depths of the oceans, Tibetan mountain peaks, the Brazilian Amazon, America’s western frontier, and other remote environments then... description [### Domesticated: Modern Dioramas of Our New Natural History Photographs by Amy Stein ](/domesticated-modern-dioramas-our-new-natural-history-photographs-amy-stein) January 22 - April 18, 2010 In Domesticated, New York photographer Amy Stein explores the tenuous relationship between humans and other animals through staged scenes inspired by true events in rural Pennsylvania. Stein was named one of the top fifteen... description [### Tangible Things: Objects from Other Harvard Collections at the Harvard Museum of Natural History ](/tangible-things-objects-other-harvard-collections-harvard-museum-natural-history) January 24 - May 29, 2011 The multi-venue exhibition, Tangible Things: Harvard Collections in World History, prompts viewers to question the ways in which objects are typically classified. Find six objects from other Harvard collections within the Harvard... description [### Headgear: The Natural History of Horns and Antlers ](/headgear-natural-history-horns-and-antlers) Through January 18, 2012 Discover how and why horns and antlers evolved through dramatic displays and video presentations illustrating their use in combat. Visitors are invited to touch specimens, compare their body height to the world's largest antlers... description [### The Language of Color ](/language-color) Through October 6, 2013 Whether it’s the brilliant blue wings of a butterfly, the scarlet feathers of a tanager, or the stripes of a zebra, animals display color in vastly different ways and for different reasons. Combining dramatic specimens with video... description [### Climate Change: Our Global Experiment ](/climate-change-our-global-experiment) Developed in collaboration with the Harvard University Center for the Environment, Climate Change: Our Global Experiment will help you separate truth from spin and provide a basis for making informed decisions affecting the future of our planet. The... description [### Mollusks: Shelled Masters of the Marine Realm ](/mollusks-shelled-masters-marine-realm) Through September 8, 2015 Mollusks explores the amazing diversity and history of mollusks–snails, clams, squid, and other invertebrates–that comprise almost a quarter of all known marine species. Featuring the research of Professor Gonzalo Giribet... description