Recent executive orders in the U.S. and Supreme Court decisions in the United Kingdom have claimed a scientific consensus regarding the binary nature of sex and gender. But what does science actually show? Kick-off your pride month celebrations with our 2025 Westbrook Lecture: Beyond the Binaries: The New Science of Sex and Gender on Thursday, […]
Explore the Wagner during our Back to School Open House—the first of our fall season! The museum will be open for self-guided exploration throughout the day. Explore our vast collection of natural history specimens, including ancient fossils, glowing minerals and animals from around the globe. Wander at your own pace or follow the path of one […]
At this Weeknights at the Wagner talk, Dr. Michael Leja will take us back to the formative period of this cultural transformation in the U.S.—three decades before the Civil War—when pictures began to permeate everyday life. This flood of images included illustrations in books, pamphlets, and newspapers; photographs on cards; prints of various kinds; posters […]
Celebrate Archives Month Philly at the Wagner as we showcase glass lantern slides from six local special collections! In the spirit of lantern exhibition culture, this salon will bring together unique and rarely-seen images presented in the context for which they were originally created. Viewers will join two scientists on their 1937 trip to Mexico […]
Did you know Pennsylvania is home to nine different species of bats? Learn why bats are important animals in our ecosystem, how humans can help protect them, and how they’re not as scary as they may seem during our November Open House! A special presentation from The Pennsylvania Bat Rescue and Rehabilitation Center will be given at […]
Learn all about what makes different minerals special and how humans utilize them in our daily lives. Upstairs in the Wagner's Exhibit Hall you'll find rows of cases featuring shiny […]
Overview Primatologist Ben Finkel explores what elderhood means for chimpanzees and other animals in the wild. WEEKNIGHTS AT THE WAGNER Growing Old in the Jungle: The Challenges of Aging for Wild Chimpanzees with Dr. Ben Finkel It was once thought that wild animals rarely lived long enough to experience age-related declines. However, substantial evidence has […]
Have your found rocks, minerals, shells, bones, insects, fossils and other specimen identified by science experts! Are you a 21st century naturalist? Do you have natural materials collected on a […]
Birdwatching requires a combination of skills: a watchful eye, a patient demeanor, and a working knowledge on what local birds look like, sound like, and where you might best find […]
Join us Thursday, June 11th from 6 - 7:30pm for Ordering the Cosmos—Charles Willson Peale and The Philadelphia Museum, a special Weeknights at the Wagner talk celebrating America's 250th by Robert McCracken Peck. In 1790, Charles Willson Peale opened a museum containing "objects of natural history and things useful and curious" to represent the culmination […]
Make your own nature prints and look at Victorian-era scientific illustrations from our collection this First Saturday Open House! Visitors can also browse our 100,000+ piece natural history collection, learn about Gyotaku—a traditional Japanese printmaking practice using REAL fish, and screenprint a poster to take home! The Wagner is a FREE Victorian natural history museum […]
Celebrate Archives Month Philly by viewing glass lantern slides from local special collections! Philadelphia Lantern Slide Salon Wednesday, October 7, 2026, 6 to 7:30 pm - in the Wagner's lecture hall Celebrate Archives Month Philly at the Wagner Free Institute of Science as we showcase glass lantern slides from the special collections of the Academy […]
