The Tour of the Natural History Museum and the Darwin Centre

I have become friends with this charming family called the Darwins, perhaps you have heard of them? They are a lovely and very kind family. An interesting story I was told on becoming acquainted with them, is that Robert Darwin was at university with Mr. Cadbury, and when they ordered pizzas, the company thought it was a joke so they never received any deliveries! Even more interesting, is that Robert admires Erasmus Darwin slightly more than Erasmus' grandson, Charles, as he was, amongst other things, a poet and a wordsmith, characteristics which Robert greatly admires.

Anyway, back to my adventure... On this occasion, my tour guide was my good friend George Darwin, who gave me a once-in-a-lifetime private tour of the Darwin Wing in the Natural History Museum. It was an amazing insight, not being a scientist myself, to learn so much about one of the greatest scientists of all time, from his descendant.

The Darwin Centre has 27 kilometres of shelves and 22 million animal specimens, including the 8.62 metre long Archie the Squid. Importantly the collection houses many specimens which were found and brought back to London by Charles Darwin himself.

Many of you may ask how Darwin became the leading expert of his age in the field of Natural Science. Putting this question to George, he told me the following; Charles Darwin was a self-taught scientist and he wrote the novel Origin of the Species principally during his voyage on the Beagle. Darwin also had many rivals and he wanted to publish his book before Wallace did. Another interesting fact I learned, was that more than 120 species and 9 genera have been named after Charles Darwin in his honour.

A nice aspect about the Darwin Centre is that it is off the main tourist trail, and therefore a lot quieter and less busy, particularly during peak hours. This meant that we could spend more time looking at all of the exhibits in relative peace, which was wonderful. I particularly liked looking at the fishes because they looked rather like little aliens, which made me laugh.

My visit was an eye-opener, I learned how necessary the upkeep was of the various specimens. From keeping them immersed in alcohol solutions, to measuring them, cataloging them and filing them correctly. Having had the great fortune of looking at the specimen jars up-close, I can tell you that the smell of alcohol is really overpowering, and not very nice at all. That being said, I did ask George if he would put me in a jar whenever I depart from this world. He looked rather horrified at the suggestion, but I'm sure I'll be able to persuade him in due course...!