The museum holds one of the largest collections of biological and anthropological artifacts in the Rocky Mountain region, totaling over four million items.
The collection includes a diverse array of fossil specimens, including vertebrates from the Mesozoic Era discovered within Colorado borders.
It houses a notable paleontology archive that supports ongoing academic research regarding prehistoric life in the Western United States.
The museum is an active research center, with faculty and students frequently contributing to the curation and study of the archival material.
The anthropology collection features significant ethnographic and archaeological artifacts documenting thousands of years of human habitation in the Southwest.
The museum maintains an extensive entomology collection with a focus on regional insect biodiversity.
The University of Colorado Museum of Natural History is a research-active institution located on the CU Boulder campus that houses a collection of over four million objects. It features extensive galleries dedicated to the natural and cultural history of the Colorado Plateau and the Rocky Mountain region. The museum's paleontological collection includes significant dinosaur fossils, such as a localized Stegosaurus specimen. Interactive exhibits detail the biology of the region, including comprehensive displays on entomology, zoology, and botany. The museum serves as an academic repository, frequently displaying research conducted by university faculty and students. Permanent installations focus on anthropology, focusing heavily on the history and archaeology of the Ancestral Puebloans and other Indigenous groups of the Southwest. Rotating temporary exhibitions often highlight current environmental or cultural research projects. The facility serves both the university student body and the general public as a primary educational resource.
The main lobby area which features large, iconic skeletal fossil displays.
Check the museum's official calendar online before visiting to see if specific galleries are closed for research or exhibition rotations.
Allocate extra time to explore the Henderson Building's unique architectural details, as it is one of the oldest buildings on the campus.
Visit the museum store for educational materials related to regional geology and natural history.
Do not mistake the museum for the Fiske Planetarium, which is located on a different part of the campus.
Closed on major university holidays and during specific campus breaks.
Maintain a quiet volume, refrain from touching exhibits unless specified, and do not bring food or drink into the galleries.
