London's Natural History Museum has opened its new free gallery, Nature and Us, which explores our evolving relationship with the natural world.
Closed to the public over 80 years ago, the gallery will initially reopen for 18 months, offering a look 50 remarkable objects, from a 400,000-year-old handaxe to a bryozoan-encrusted Star Wars toy.
"We’re delighted that, after more than 80 years, we can now reopen this gallery to the public," said Doug Gurr, director of the Natural History Museum.
The new Nature and Us gallery at the Natural History Museum closed to the public over 80 years agoDavid Parry / Natural History Museum
"It’s a wonderful space with a fascinating history, and we’re excited for visitors to discover it for themselves and encounter some of the remarkable objects we’ve brought together in Nature and Us.
"Opening the doors is a really special moment for everyone involved in bringing this space back to life, and we can’t wait to see visitors exploring it for the first time."
For the first time since 1943, visitors will be able to look around the gallery, which previously served as an osteology (skeleton) gallery and a mammals gallery.
Its original wooden herbarium cabinets remain in place, and each object on view asks guests to consider how they think and feel about nature, how they interact with it, and how their relationship with it has changed.
Nature and Us and the reopening of the gallery are the next steps in the NHM150 campaign to transform the museum’s South Kensington building.
It follows the success of the museum’s Fixing Our Broken Planet gallery, which has welcomed 3 million visitors since opening in 2025.
Earlier this week, the Natural History Museum launched a new UK-wide programme to support community-led action on climate change and health as part of its Fixing Our Broken Planet initiative.
