Natural Science Museum of Barcelona, Natural history museum in El Besòs i el Maresme district, Barcelona, Spain
The Natural Science Museum of Barcelona, also known as Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, is a natural history museum housed in a modern building in the El Besòs i el Maresme district. It displays fossils, minerals, rocks, and preserved organisms drawn from one of the largest natural history collections in Spain.
The institution was founded in 1882 using collections left to the city by Francesc Martorell i Peña. It moved several times across Barcelona over the following decades before settling in its current building in the Forum area.
The museum sits in a building that faces the sea in the Forum area, giving the visit a distinctive setting away from the old city center. The displays connect rocks, fossils, and living organisms in a way that shows the natural world as one continuous story.
The museum is located near the seafront at the edge of the city, so it pairs well with a walk along the waterfront before or after your visit. The collection covers a wide range of topics, so it helps to choose a few sections in advance to make the most of your time.
A whale skeleton found on a nearby beach in 1862 hangs in the entrance hall, and its name was chosen by a public vote. This specimen was one of the first major pieces to join the collection and helped spark the museum's early growth.
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