Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi

The Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, poised to be the region’s largest at 35,000 square feet, is 65% complete, with the structure in place. The project on Saadiyat Island will feature exhibitions designed to take visitors on a 13.8-billion-year journey, highlighting exceptional specimens and artefacts to inspire environmental stewardship and scientific curiosity. The museum aims to augment Abu Dhabi’s cultural and educational landscape alongside other iconic institutions like the Louvre and the forthcoming Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, as part of Saadiyat Vision 2025, which aims to grow domestic, regional, and global visitor numbers, supporting the development of Abu Dhabi’s tourism ecosystem. Once complete in late 2025, visitors to the new natural history museum will travel on a 14-billion-year journey through time and space – from the earliest origins of the universe to a thought-provoking perspective into our Earth’s future. The building will span 35,000 square metres and include temporary exhibition spaces for special events and theatre facilities. The museum will also double up as a scientific research and teaching institution and an educational resource for learning about the evolving story of our planet. A highlight of the museum’s collection will be a striking 12-meter-long fossilised skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus Rex (dubbed ‘Stan’) sold at auction for a record-breaking $32 million in 2020. The project is led by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT) in partnership with the real estate development, management, and investment company Miral. The project has appointed construction firm ALEC as the main contractor and architecture firm Mecanoo who have designed a building inspired by the pentagonal shapes of cellular structures. No official budget has been announced — ours is an estimate. (Updated 20 March 2024)