Step into a world of wonder and exploration with the groundbreaking online exhibition, a collaboration between Google Arts & Culture, the Mineralogical and Geological Museum at Harvard, and esteemed natural history institutions globally. This innovative digital experience invites you to delve into the fascinating realm of natural history, encountering Jurassic giants and exploring spectacular collections from the comfort of your own home.
Launched today, this unprecedented online exhibition, accessible at g.co/naturalhistory, opens a treasure trove of natural history wonders to internet users worldwide. Through a partnership spearheaded by Google, you can now explore Harvard’s exceptional gold and opal collections and countless other natural treasures with just a few clicks.
This cutting-edge collection harnesses state-of-the-art technology to breathe virtual life into extinct creatures and narrate captivating stories of our planet’s multi-billion-year evolution. Prepare to be amazed as you come face-to-face with Jurassic giants through immersive 360-degree videos. These videos offer a unique perspective, providing a tangible sense of the scale and presence of these magnificent animals and allowing you to imagine what it might have been like to stand alongside them.
Panoramic Street View imagery provides an exclusive backstage pass, enabling virtual tours of iconic institutions like the American Museum of Natural History in New York and Chicago’s Field Museum. Beyond virtual tours, you can immerse yourself in over a hundred enthralling narratives centered around dinosaurs, renowned fossils, and also discover the wonders of plants, insects, and minerals, all available at g.co/naturalhistory.
The Mineralogical and Geological Museum at Harvard University (MGMH), a proud member of the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture, is thrilled to collaborate with the Google Cultural Institute to unveil its exquisite and invaluable specimens to a global audience. For the first time, many of these hidden gems, often kept in vaults and restricted collection areas, are accessible to the public since their acquisition by the museum. The MGMH’s contributions to this online exhibition showcase the earth’s geological marvels, emphasizing not only their beauty but also their historical significance. Representing over 200 years of history as the oldest continuously operating mineralogical and geological museum in the United States, the MGMH offers a unique glimpse into the past. Featured prominently are two of the museum’s most prized possessions: the Gold Horn and the Hamlin necklace. Their unique histories are explored in detail, enriched by historical photographs and documents that provide context to these remarkable specimens. Further exhibits highlight the museum’s diverse range of traveling educational displays and ever-evolving thematic showcases, designed to captivate both the general public and avid mineral enthusiasts. The Google Cultural Institute provides an expansive platform, enabling the MGMH to share its collections openly and broadly, reaching audiences far beyond its physical walls.
The Google Cultural Institute is dedicated to making the world’s cultural heritage accessible to everyone, partnering with over 1000 organizations to bring cultural treasures to internet users and developing tools that empower the cultural sector to expand its online presence.
For this ambitious exhibition, natural history institutions from 15 countries have contributed over a hundred interactive stories, sharing an impressive compilation of 300,000 photos, videos, and documents online, all in collaboration with Google. Leveraging the latest technological innovations, this project brings the enchantment of these legendary venues to life, offering a unique opportunity for everyone to reconnect with the narrative of our planet’s evolution and the richness of our environment.
The online exhibition is now live at g.co/naturalhistorynaturalhistory, accessible to all online, free of charge, via the web and the Google Arts & Culture mobile app available on iOS and Android. Explore the immersive 360-degree videos on YouTube.
