The NAS National Museum of Natural History (NMNH, Kyiv) was founded in 1996 as a single exhibitory-territorial complex incorporating the geological, palaeontological, zoological, botanical and archaeological museums.
On December 10, 1996 NMNH was awarded the ‘National’ status by a decree of the President of Ukraine. This act emphasized the domestic and international recognition of high performance of the Museum.
The main lines of NMNH’s activities are:
- conservation and enrichment of its stock collections (which consist of the most scientifically important specimens) and exhibitory collections;
- research in the field of natural-history museology;
- organizing and conducting fundamental and applied scientific research in high-priority fields of natural history;
- educational activities, including popularization of scientific knowledge and research achievements among the general public.
Since its foundation, the museum complex has become well-known and popular both in Ukraine and far abroad. It is listed in the international data books and directories. NMNH has made a significant contribution to the current knowledge of nature, tissues of man-and- environment relations, propaganda of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources, and aesthetic education of the young generation. Alongside with popularization of scientific knowledge, NMNH carries out extensive scientific research. Its unique scientific collections (comprising about two million specimens) are a basis for fruitful studies of Museum’s staff and a source for further development and update of the exposition.
The importance and great popularity of the National Museum of Natural History are grounded on scientific thoroughness of its expositions. In addition, the Museum has been the first among the natural-history museums of Ukraine to widely use artistic design. Nowadays NMNH is one of the largest centres of museum studies, the unquestionable asset and pride of Ukraine and, in opinion of many specialists, is among the best modern natural-history centres worldwide.