PHILADELPHIA, March 7, 2013

To cap off its yearlong bicentennial celebration, the nation’s oldest natural history museum is offering free admission and special activities on Sunday, March 24. Then it’s on to the third century for the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.

“We’ve had an amazing year, including our bicentennial exhibit, behind-the-scenes tours of the collections, special themed months, and our affiliation with Drexel University,” said Academy President and CEO George W. Gephart, Jr. “Now as we enter our third century we want to thank our visitors with this special day of free admission.”

Doors open at 10 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. Here are some of the exciting activities:

Get a final look at that giant condor mounted on the 80-foot-long wall of Academy specimens in the exhibit The Academy at 200: The Nature of Discovery.

• Help make memories by signing a handmade bicentennial book.
• See live animal shows at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
• Get a jump on spring by sprouting your own bean plant to take home and grow.
• Play Dinosaur CSI and investigate fossil evidence for predation.
• Meet Eddie, the Tyrannosaurs rex mascot.
• Touch real objects from the Academy’s collection of 18 million specimens and compare them to items in the dioramas.
• Learn about diatom diversity and water pollution by participating in a sampling activity.
• Make a 3-D T. rex to take home.

Media Contact