Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

in Beauty It Is Begun...Native American Children's Art

See drawings, paintings, poetry, and 17 pieces of jewelry, all the work of Native American children.

March 1, 1977 – July 31, 1977

Zuni Pottery

This exhibition features three cases of 19th-century pottery -- including jars, canteens, and bowls -- made by the Zuni people of the southwestern United States.

December 1, 1987 – May 25, 2004

Natural History Museum

Yuungnaqpiallerput (The Way We Genuinely Live): Masterworks of Yup'ik Science and Survival

This exhibition reveals Yup'ik elders' scientific and spiritual knowledge for living in a sub-arctic environment.

April 17, 2010 – July 25, 2010

Natural History Museum

Yellow Diamond from Zale Corporation

Marvel at the largest existing diamond-in-the-rough in the world, weighing 890 carats.

November 22, 1984 – January 6, 1985

Natural History Museum

Year of the Tiger

Marvel at some 40 photographs by wildlife photographer Michael Nichols, from the National Geographic book Year of the Tiger.

November 11, 1998 – April 26, 1999

Natural History Museum

Year of the Coast

See specimens from the nearby seashore. Various coastal features and life forms are highlighted.

October 1, 1980 – April 1, 1996

Natural History Museum

X-Ray Vision: Fish Inside Out

X-rays of some of the fish in the museum's collection reveal delicate and exquisite details and help scientists understand the evolutionary development of fish.

February 4, 2012 – August 5, 2012

Natural History Museum

X-Ray Photography of Fossils

See 45 radiographs taken by Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Sturmer of Lower Davonian plant and marine animal fossils taken in the fossil-rich Rheinische Schiefergebirge area.

May 7, 1977 – July 17, 1977

Natural History Museum

Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th-Century Chesapeake

This exhibition features archaeological discoveries that reveal the historic importance of Jamestown and its contribution to the American way of life.

February 7, 2009 – January 5, 2014

Natural History Museum

Wooden Carvings of North American Birds

View some 15 carvings, realistically painted and in natural poses, by James Eddleman of Lubbock, Texas.

January 1, 1978 – May 31, 1978

Natural History Museum

Wondrous Cold: An Antarctic Journey

See 50 color and black-and-white photographs of the Antarctic landscape by award-winning photographer Joan Myers. Large panoramas of Antarctica's beauty and desolation are juxtaposed with scenes of wildlife, people, and abandoned historic huts of early explorers.

May 18, 2006 – September 4, 2006

Natural History Museum

Wonder Bound

See a selection of rare books from the 18th and 19th centuries, along with specimens, that document the peculiarities of early museum collecting practices and the origins of natural history museums.

May 24, 2002 – November 15, 2002

Natural History Museum

Wilderness Forever: 50 Years of Protecting America's Wild Places

See America as you've never seen it—wild, untouched, and free.

September 3, 2014 – June 13, 2016

Natural History Museum

Wilderness America

Commemorate the Silver Anniversary of the Wilderness Society through photographs, maps, and text.

September 8, 1989 – November 26, 1989

Natural History Museum

When Time and Duty Permit: Collecting During World War II

Learn about the Smithsonian's contribution to the war effort in the Pacific during World War II and the contributions of American soldiers to the collections of the National Museum of Natural History.

July 14, 2012 – April 28, 2013

Natural History Museum

Whatchamacallit: Natural Art

On view is an environmental sculpture of entwined maple saplings -- approximately 8-1/2 feet high -- created on site by North Carolina artist Patrick Dougherty.

January 12, 2000 – August 15, 2001

Natural History Museum

Whales: From Bone to Book

Trace the process of Natural History from the discovery of a whale fossil on a beach to museum drawer to scientific illustration.

May 25, 2013 – June 8, 2014

Natural History Museum

Wethersfield Meteorites

View two celebrated meteorites that fell in the same town, Wethersfield, Connecticut, eleven years apart.

July 22, 1983 – October 30, 1983

Natural History Museum

Walk Among Dinosaurs! Augmented Reality Experience

Walk with Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, and Troodon of the Late Cretaceous, through the use of augmented reality and motion tracking.

May 21, 2014 – September 2, 2014

Natural History Museum

Voyages of Discovery

Explore the human drama of key British scientific voyages by Sir Hans Sloane, Captain James Cook, and Charles Darwin during the Age of Sail. This exhibition presents the places, animals, plants, and people they encountered.

April 19, 2001 – July 22, 2001

Natural History Museum

Volcano Watch: Maurice and Katia Krafft and the Smithsonian

This showcase explores the work of the Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Program and honors the Kraffts, whose efforts to educate the public about the dangers of volcanoes has saved thousands of lives but has cost them their own.

October 31, 1997 – April 30, 1998

Natural History Museum

Visual Griots of Mali: Empowering Youth Through Photography

On view are 49 black-and-white photographs that depict everyday life in an African village taken by Malian youths, ages 12-17.

October 2, 2006 – April 29, 2007

Natural History Museum

Vikings: The North Atlantic Saga

Commemorating the 1,000-year anniversary of the Vikings' landing in North America, this exhibition explores the impact of Leif Ericsson's journey and introduces new archaeological evidence that expands knowledge of early Scandinavian and North American life.

April 29, 2000 – August 13, 2000

Natural History Museum

Views of a Vanishing Frontier (Karl Bodmer Indian Watercolors)

This exhibition commemorates the 150th anniversary of the expedition conducted by the German naturalist Prince Maximilian and Swiss artist Karl Bodmer, who explored the Western frontier.

January 4, 1985 – March 31, 1985

Natural History Museum

Vanishing Race and Other Illusions: A New Look at the Work of Edward Curtis

Edward Curtis has long been considered the leading documentary photographer of the North American Indian. While acknowledging his contribution to art photography, this exhibition offers new evidence that Curtis presented a highly romanticized view of the American Indian in the early 20th century.

March 4, 1982 – April 15, 1982

Natural History Museum