Our walk through Grant Park concluded at the Field Museum of Natural History. This enormous institution ranks among the largest museums in the world, with a collection totaling around 24 million specimens.
The Field Museum is housed in a grand building with striking architecture, most evident in its vast Grand Hall, surrounded by the various exhibition wings.
The largest exhibit in the Field Museum, Máximo, a 27-metre-long titanosaur and one of the largest dinosaurs ever discovered, dominates the Great Hall.
Despite its vast collection, the exhibits on display are thoughtfully curated, reinforcing the museum's reputation as one of the most important scientific centres in the United States, and arguably worldwide.
Much of the museum is devoted to seemingly endless displays showcasing an extraordinary range of animal life from across the globe.
Alongside its extensive animal collection, the Field Museum also houses a vast array of artefacts from civilisations across the Americas, including exhibits that trace human migration across the two continents.
The Field Museum features an extensive dinosaur collection, with a particular focus on Tyrannosaurus rex. SUE, the most complete T. rex skeleton ever discovered, is the centrepiece of a vast dinosaur gallery.
The only more impressive collection I’ve seen is at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Alberta.
The Field Museum is the most impressive natural history museum I have ever visited. We spent nearly five hours there and still didn’t see half the exhibits, it became overwhelming by the end. As a Chicago resident, it would probably take at least five visits to feel like you’d covered it properly. For local teachers, it’s an incredible educational resource.
