One of the largest in Moscow is the State Darwin Museum, which was opened in 1907, more than 100 years ago. It was one of the very first natural-science institutions in Europe related to nature, the origin of man, and his evolution.
Museum founder
Before starting to talk about what the State Darwin Museum on 57 Vavilova Street is, it should be mentioned its founder, A.F. Cots. He was a scientist, professor, doctor of biological sciences, teacher and museologist.
Alexander was born in 1880 in a German family that emigrated to Russia. The future zoologist chose this profession for a reason, because his father Alfred Karlovich was a doctor of philosophy, botanist, linguist and poet. From an early age, the younger Cotes studied science and already in his youth did not think about which way to choose for himself.
Already at the age of 19, Alexander went on his first expedition to Western Siberia, from where the collection of the future museum began to be created. Acquaintance with the famous zoologist Fedor Lorenz also helped to become a successful taxidermist. Their friendship ended only when Frederick died in 1909. It was very important for Alexander to preserve not only his collection, but also the one that was created in his friend’s laboratory for 40 years. And Cotes suggested that the heirs make him CFO, and pay a salary in the form of effigies, which later became exhibits of the future museum.
History
The creator of the creation was the zoologist A.F. Cotes, who began teaching evolutionary courses in female courses for students, but used graphic examples such as stuffed animals. Visual material was a personal collection of the scientist, which he presented in 1913 to the zoological laboratory of courses. Gradually, it accumulated and became known as the Museum of Evolutionary Theory. By this time, the composition of the founders was determined, among which was not only A.F. Cotes, and also F.E. Fedulov (who was also a good taxidermist), V.A. Vatagin (animal sculptor, professor) and N.N. Ladygina-Kots (student, future scientist).
It was in the same year that the wedding of Alexander and Nadezhda Ladygina took place, which at that time was a third-year student at the Moscow Higher Women's Courses, and in the future became a famous zoopsychologist.
The young couple traveled abroad several times to acquire new exhibits, they wrote scientific works, created sculptures, paintings and conducted scientific research. During the years of the revolution and civil war it was very difficult, cold and hungry, but the employees did not interrupt their work.
Only in 1922, the institution received the official name of the State Darwin Museum in Moscow.
Cotes sought to show the expositions to everyone, propagandizing evolutionary teachings. For more than 30 years, more than half a million people have been able to come to the museum. Over the years, such a collection has gathered that it began to resemble a storehouse, but before a new building was built and opened, many years passed. Only in 1995 the doors of a new, additional complex were opened and the dream of the founder of the State Darwin Museum came true. For 40 years, Cotes remained the director of his "brainchild."
The new building of the Darwin Museum
For more than 20 years, a new building has been under construction, and the opening took place in 1995. The exposition, which is located in this part, is connected with theories of evolution, with heredity and variability, with the diversity of life on Earth.
The State Darwin Museum is one of the largest in Russia, and millions of people visit it annually. Here you can not only study the exhibits, but also choose the “Educational guide-guide”, which allows each visitor to independently familiarize themselves with some section of science, which will make the stay even more interesting.
Expositions
In the State Darwin Museum on Vavilova 57, there are several permanent exhibits that are located on three floors.
The first is a tour desk, as well as a small cinema with 185 seats. Next is the exposition "Museum History", which is presented in photographs and documents, as well as the exhibition "The Diversity of Life on Earth", where you can see live exhibits of tarantulas.
On the second floor there are the following halls - “Microevolution” and “Stages of cognition of wildlife”, as well as recreation, where temporary exhibitions are periodically held.
On the third floor, everyone can see the Macroevolution exhibition and the zoogeography hall, where wildlife is recreated in glass display cases.
In addition to the main building, there is also an exhibition complex where there is a greenhouse, educational laboratory, cafe, an interactive attraction and much more.
Exposition "The Origin of Man"
One of the most important halls, of course, is associated with the origin of man and his evolution.
An excursionist who has visited this hall will get acquainted with the ancient man, his life, culture and stages of development. Here you can get acquainted with the point of view of the naturalist Charles Darwin, who put forward the hypothesis that man came from a monkey. Despite the fact that there were few facts, he was able in his book to show the similarity of people and anthropoid apes in physiological and ontogenetic characteristics.
In addition to the theory of Charles Darwin, you can get acquainted with the theory of Karl Linnaeus, which tells about the features of the order of primates, as well as monkeys and semi-monkeys. The State Darwin Museum offers photographs, documents, drawings that can clearly demonstrate how ideas developed, studies were conducted and theories of the formation of the world were supposed.
Further in this room, each evolutionary period of human development is examined in more detail:
- hominization;
- Australopithecus and skilled man;
- archanthropes;
- paleoanthropes;
- Neoanthropes, or Cro-Magnons.
Wildlife Exposition
In one of the halls you can see the exposition, which tells about how the formation of biology took place, that is, how living organisms developed. After all, a person was always interested when plants and animals, bacteria and fungi appeared, and this can be seen from the cave paintings that the ancient man left.
Acquaintance with this exposition State Darwin Museum on Vavilova Street, house 57, begins with a scientist who was considered the founder of biology, namely, the philosopher Aristotle. He tried to systematize his accumulated knowledge and pass it on to his descendants.
Next comes the Middle Ages, where it was believed that the main thing was religion, and that the world around was not worth knowing, all science was pursued by the Inquisition.
The next important stage was the Renaissance, which was marked by the rapid development of science, when such directions as embryology, physiology, anatomy, systematics were born.
For a long time, up to the XVII century, it was believed that flora and fauna were unchanged, but exactly until such scientists as N. Stenon and J. Cuvier did not tell which exhibits were found in the form of extinct organisms during excavation.
Enormous attention in the exhibition is paid to Lamarck, who proposed a consistent theory of evolution, considered progressive development from simple to complex. However, the theory of J.B. Lamarck was not considered scientific because he could not prove his arguments.
The first scientific theory that was considered evolutionary was the theory of Charles Darwin. You can get acquainted with all the facts, evidence, documents and important events by visiting the permanent exhibition.
State Darwin Museum (Moscow): address and how to get
A popular science institution, not only in Russia but also in Europe, is visited by millions of people today: schoolchildren, students, adults and senior citizens, foreigners and Russians. The State Darwin Museum is located on Vavilova 57, it is very easy to get to it.
Firstly, you can arrive by private car, but in advance to get acquainted with parking places and find out about their cost. Secondly, you can choose public transport, including the metro. Get to the Akademicheskaya station and walk to Vavilova street or take bus number 119. Or to the station "University" and then transfer to tram number 14 or number 39 to the stop "st. Dmitry Ulyanov. "
Museum Hours
The State Darwin Museum at 57 Vavilova Street is open for everyone seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. except Monday. On Tuesday, the exhibition opens at 11.00 and closes at 19.00. It is also worth remembering that the last Friday of each month and January 1 is closed. Before you get to the museum, you should buy a ticket at the box office, which closes half an hour earlier, so the last visitors can check in at 17.30.
Ticket price
Before you get to the State Darwin Museum on 57 Vavilova Street, you should purchase tickets at the box office, which is located on the ground floor. The ticket price for adults is 400 rubles, for schoolchildren, students and senior citizens, the cost is 100 rubles. Preschoolers, veterans, orphans, people with disabilities and children from large families can go for free.
Separately, it is worth specifying the price for temporary expositions and exhibitions, as well as for excursion programs, where the cost will depend on the number of people in the group.
Activities for children at the State Darwin Museum
The most curious visitors, of course, are the children who often come here with their class, as well as with their parents. You can spend the whole day here, and the child will not get tired at all, but will want to come again.
A lot of classes have been invented for children, where they study insects, mushrooms, and a lesson such as studying animal tracks, sericulture lesson, or the Ecological Pathway takes place.
Separately, it is worth highlighting the lesson for children and parents, “The World Under the Microscope,” where you can see the environment, magnified several tens of times, observe the life of organisms that are not visible to the human eye, and learn how to work with a microscope.
What are the thematic classes:
- “Such a diverse microcosm”, which will allow you to see organisms, study them in detail, after which you will understand that it is simply impossible to confuse them, because they are all different.
- "Jaws of insects" - and you wondered how different jaws can be and why organisms are so arranged?
- “Who lives under our feet” - how many organisms live in the soil, why did nature create them, what do they look like?
Interesting events
Having reached the State Darwin Museum by metro, set off to see interesting events and events that often take place both annually and as a temporary exhibition.
For example, March 22 is World Water Day, April 22 is International Earth Day, and a very interesting event on October 17 is Leshy Day.
In the museum you can not only have an interesting time, but also celebrate a children's birthday, which the child will remember for life. There are several programs for children of different ages and depending on the number of people in the group.
So, the program includes an interactive tour with different topics, tea drinking in a separate room and, if desired, independent examination of the exhibits and the passage of the labyrinth “Walk through Evolution”.