About the museum
Collections
We have hundreds of thousands of objects in our collection, from aircraft to microchips.
History
The Science Museum as an institution has been in existence for about a century and a half. It has its origins in the Great Exhibition of 1851, held in Hyde Park in the huge glass building known as the Crystal Palace.
Other Sites
The Science Museum's main building is in South Kensington, but we have two other sites available in which we store the rest of our collections. Both have fascinating histories, and are sometimes open for visits.
Science Museum website
Our website first launched in 1994, shortly after the Natural History Museum's.
Library and Archives
The Science Museum library was founded in 1883 as the Science Library of the South Kensington Museum, and had grown into an important national science library by the 1930s. More recently we have specialised in the history of science and technology, in our key role as part of the National Museum of Science & Industry.
Science Museum Arts Projects
About Art at the Science Museum Science Museum arts projects explore artists' perspectives on the past, present and future of science and technology, creating new opportunities for encountering contemporary art.