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Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
a large piece of blue lapis lazuli
Second Floor | Exhibit

Objects of Wonder

Past exhibit September 8, 2024
Location map

Prepare to be Awestruck

Explore the breadth and splendor of the Museum’s collection through some of our most significant and beautiful artifacts and specimens.

Collections of real objects are what this museum is all about. Smithsonian researchers examine objects with a variety of scientific tools to reveal hidden complexities, while cultural communities turn to our collections to revitalize their traditions. From their astonishing scale to surprising form to awe-inspiring rarity—experiencing these objects in person creates moments of wonder and curiosity that can’t be found elsewhere. 

a colorful glass vase
Did you know?

Researchers used the Tuxtla Statuette to decipher the epi-Olmec writing system, which represents both syllables and words

Look For

Two bird illustrations on a page in the Audubon Folio.
Original hand-colored illustrations from “Birds of America” by John James Audubon are on display. Pages in the volume-which weighs over 50 pounds-are turned twice a week, so most of the beautiful illustrations can be seen throughout its time on display.
A board of colorful beetles
A wall of 500 insect specimens, representing the dazzling diversity of this prolific animal group.
a large piece of blue lapis lazuli
The "Blue Flame," a massive slab of lapis lazuli from Afghanistan
A whale earwax specimen in the Objects of Wonder exhibit.
An earwax plug from a baleen whale, which has layers (like a tree’s rings) that track age, growth, and environmental conditions throughout its life
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A round green gem surrounded by diamonds on a necklace.

Every Object Has a Story

See the science, stories, and geography of our Objects of Wonder exhibit from the comfort of your home (or classroom) with our new StoryMap.
Explore Here

Things To Do

  • Listen to a Tsimshian (Pacific Northwest Native) storyteller recount the family history painted on a 38-foot-long house front as specific parts of the design light up.
  • Watch a jumbled fossil slab come to life as the bones reassemble themselves into a lifelike animation.
  • Test your observational skills by playing an interactive touchscreen game about the objects on display.
A blue and orange mandarinfish, or Synchiropus splendidus

What Makes Things Blue?

The color blue is all around us, but not all blues are made the same. Explore objects from this exhibit's collection that illustrate the different reasons some things in nature look blue.
What Makes Things Blue?

Experience More

four colorful (green, yellow, red, and pink) gems on black background
Second Floor | Exhibit
Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems, and Minerals
An illustration of a human ancestor
First Floor | Exhibit
David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins