Natural History Museum of Denmark
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The Natural History Museum of Denmark ( da, Statens Naturhistoriske Museum) is a
natural history museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more. ...
located in
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
,
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...
. It was created as a 1 January 2004 merger of Copenhagen's Zoological Museum, Geological Museum, Botanical Museum and Central Library, and
Botanical Gardens A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
. It is affiliated with the
University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...
.


History

The Natural History Museum of Denmark was established on 1 January 2004 by the merging of four long-standing institutions: the Botanical Garden, the Botanical Museum & Central Library, the Geological Museum, and the Zoological Museum. The history of the individual departments, which now are part of the united Natural History Museum of Denmark, can be traced back to the 17th century. One historical figure in particular played a crucial role in the creation of the Danish national heritage, namely
Ole Worm Ole Worm (13 May 1588 – 31 August 1654), who often went by the Latinized form of his name Olaus Wormius, was a Danish physician, natural historian and antiquary. He was a professor at the University of Copenhagen where he taught Greek, Lati ...
(1588–1654). His cabinet of natural curiosities, the Museum Wormianum, formed together with the Royal Danish Cabinet of Curiosities the nucleus of what later would become the Geological Museum and the Zoological Museum. In 1621 Ole Worm also became the director of the Botanical Garden, which at that time had been quite neglected. Here he introduced a large variety of medicinal plants and rare species from abroad. Today the Natural History Museum of Denmark is organized under the Faculty of Science at the University of Copenhagen.


Collections

The collections are collected over four centuries. The 14 million objects include skins and hides, skeletons, animals in jars with alcohol, insects on pins, plants on herbarium sheets, fossils, minerals, meteorites and more, from all over the world. Additionally, the living collections of the Botanical Garden number some 10,000 plant species such as orchids, cacti, carnivorous plants and exotic trees. The collections form the foundations of the museum’s research, teaching and outreach efforts, and for a wide range of international research. As well as being a research tool and outreach resource, the collections are also a link to our cultural heritage: many objects exemplify a preservation technique of a specific era, have inspired classic works of art or tell a story of the era in which they were collected.


Exhibitions

Today, all exhibitions and public engagement programs are located at the Natural History Museum of Denmark and in the Botanical Garden. The Zoological Museum was closed in October 2022 as a part of the preparations for a new natural history museum in the Botanical Garden. The Botanical Garden, as well as the current premises of the Natural History Museum of Denmark, will be part of the new natural history museum.


New museum

In 2025, the Botanical Garden in Copenhagen will house a new national museum of natural history.


Directors

*2004–2007: Henrik Enghoff *2007–2014: Morten Meldgaard *2015: Kurt H. Kjær (interim) *2015: Peter C. Kjærgaard


References


External links

* The Natural History Museum of Denmark
The Zoological Museum in Copenhagen.The Botanical Garden in Copenhagen.University of Copenhagen.
{{authority control Museums in Copenhagen 2004 establishments in Denmark Museums established in 2004 Natural history museums in Denmark University museums in Denmark University of Copenhagen