National Chilean Museum of Natural History

The Chilean National Museum of Natural History is one of three national museums in Chile, along with the Museum of Fine Arts and the National History Museum. It is located in Quinta Normal Park.

The National Museum of Natural History is one of the oldest in America; It was founded on September 14, 1830 by the wise French naturalist Claudio Gay, hired by the Chilean government to carry out a complete study on Chile and "form a Cabinet of Natural History, containing the main vegetable and mineral productions of the territory".
Since 1876 it occupies the Neoclassical-style building, in the Parque Normal de Santiago, the one that was built by the French architect Paul Lathoud for the First International Exhibition held in 1875.

Claudio Gay was succeeded by Museum Directors with figures of significance in national life, and especially in the development of Natural Sciences: Filiberto Germain, Rodulfo A. Philippi, his son Federico Philippi, Eduardo Moore, Ricardo Latcham, Enrique Gigoux, Humberto Fuenzalida, Grete Mostny, Hans Niemeyer, Luis Capurro, Alberto Carvacho, María Eliana Ramírez, Claudio Gómez and María Isabel Orellana (as alternate director).