English | Български
Saturday, 19 July 2025
The National Museum of Natural History at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences provides free access to its exhibitions to all Ukrainian citizens.
— What’s on display
The museum exhibitions show the Caroline parakeet, which became extinct world-wide, the monk seal, bearded vulture, little bustard, grey and maiden crane, steppe viper, German sturgeon, all of which extinct in Bulgaria… [more]
National Museum of Natural History, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences —
the richest museum of natural history on the Balkans, nearly a million and a half specimens of animals, plants and minerals
the richest museum of natural history on the Balkans, nearly a million and a half specimens of animals, plants and minerals
Being the first and the richest natural history museum on the Balkans, the National Museum of Natural History at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences studies, preserves and disseminates information about the living and non-living nature both in Bulgaria and throughout the world… [more]
— Visit us
National Museum of Natural History
Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
1 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
Phone: (+359 2) 9885116 — Operator; Information: (+359 87) 9226573, 10:00 — 18:00 hours
Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
1 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
Phone: (+359 2) 9885116 — Operator; Information: (+359 87) 9226573, 10:00 — 18:00 hours
Opening hours
Monday to Sunday 10:00 — 18:00
On 24 and 31 December: 10:00 — 13:00
The museum is open every day except 1 January, 3 March, Easter [Eastern] and 25 December. Last admission is at 17:30.
Monday to Sunday 10:00 — 18:00
On 24 and 31 December: 10:00 — 13:00
The museum is open every day except 1 January, 3 March, Easter [Eastern] and 25 December. Last admission is at 17:30.
![Hall 4 — Mineralogy [Genesis of the minerals]](images/main/exhibitions/thumbs/04-1.jpg)
— Palaeontological Museum Dimitar Kovachev, Asenovgrad
The Dimitar Kovachev Palaeontological Museum, a branch of the National Museum of Natural History at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (NMNHS) in Asenovgrad, was created with a contract dated 22.02.1990 between the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, the National Museum of Natural History and the Asenovgrad Municipality… [more]
— Administrative documents
— Did you know that…
The museum was founded in 1889 by the Royal Prince Ferdinand — an ornithologist, lepidopterist, and a botanist.
The museum was founded in 1889 by the Royal Prince Ferdinand — an ornithologist, lepidopterist, and a botanist.
Also at the museum
— Bat Research and Conservation Centre
— Biospeleology Research Centre
— Student Club of Biospeleology
Projects
— Upgrade of the Research Infrastructure: Distributed System of Scientific Collections — Bulgaria (DiSSCo-BG): Phase 1 (2020—2023)
— Caves as a reservoir for novel and reoccurring zoonoses — ecological monitoring and metagenomic analysis in realtime
— PESI — A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure
— Prime Butterfly Areas in Bulgaria — Identifying and describing the most important sites for butterflies in the country
— Bat Research and Conservation Centre
— Biospeleology Research Centre
— Student Club of Biospeleology
Projects
— Upgrade of the Research Infrastructure: Distributed System of Scientific Collections — Bulgaria (DiSSCo-BG): Phase 1 (2020—2023)
— Caves as a reservoir for novel and reoccurring zoonoses — ecological monitoring and metagenomic analysis in realtime
— PESI — A Pan-European Species directories Infrastructure
— Prime Butterfly Areas in Bulgaria — Identifying and describing the most important sites for butterflies in the country
— Research & collections
The museum staff’s scientific research is linked with the latest national and international priorities in the fields of biodiversity, ecology, and nature conservation. The entomology and palaeozoology studies are especially intense… [more]
— Education
Intern at the museum… why?
‘I became an intern at the NMNHS because I like meeting many and different people, showing them the amazing biodiversity on Earth and making them conscious of different environmental issues.’
— Nija Toshkova
‘I became an intern at the NMNHS because I like meeting many and different people, showing them the amazing biodiversity on Earth and making them conscious of different environmental issues.’
— Nija Toshkova
— e-Natura
— Databases of natural history collections and other electronic tools
— Types in the natural history collections in Bulgaria
— Database of National Museum of Natural History staff publications
— The Spiders (Araneae) of Bulgaria
— Types in the natural history collections in Bulgaria
— Database of National Museum of Natural History staff publications
— The Spiders (Araneae) of Bulgaria
GEMMOLOGY — GEMSTONES — characteristics, classification, specimens, library
— About us
News
The Struma Motorway will pass outside of Kresna Gorge — Some incredibly good news from the past week is the successful resolution of Bulgaria’s longest campaign for environmental protection, which lasted almost 30 years. A press release…
Second working visit of Prof. Zbigniew Bochenski in the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia — In the first week of June, the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia (NMNHS) hosted for the second time Prof. Zbigniew M. Bochenski from the Institute of Systematics and Evolution…
The Underwater Petrified Forest — a new temporary exhibition at the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia — On June 3rd, 2025, in the lobby of the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia, Assoc. Prof. Nikolay Simov (NMNHS) and Assoc. Prof. Lubomir Kenderov (Vice-Dean of Economic Affairs…
New study reveals that not one, but two pathogenic species cause white-nose disease in hibernating bats — An international team of researchers led by the University of Montpellier, with the participation of Dr Violeta Zhelyazkova from the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia at the…
More news
— RSS | Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube
The Struma Motorway will pass outside of Kresna Gorge — Some incredibly good news from the past week is the successful resolution of Bulgaria’s longest campaign for environmental protection, which lasted almost 30 years. A press release…
Second working visit of Prof. Zbigniew Bochenski in the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia — In the first week of June, the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia (NMNHS) hosted for the second time Prof. Zbigniew M. Bochenski from the Institute of Systematics and Evolution…
The Underwater Petrified Forest — a new temporary exhibition at the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia — On June 3rd, 2025, in the lobby of the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia, Assoc. Prof. Nikolay Simov (NMNHS) and Assoc. Prof. Lubomir Kenderov (Vice-Dean of Economic Affairs…
New study reveals that not one, but two pathogenic species cause white-nose disease in hibernating bats — An international team of researchers led by the University of Montpellier, with the participation of Dr Violeta Zhelyazkova from the National Museum of Natural History, Sofia at the…
More news
— RSS | Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube
History
The National Museum of Natural History at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences has a history of more than one hundred and thirty years. It is the oldest museum in Bulgaria and the oldest and richest among the natural history museums on the Balkan Peninsula… [more]
The National Museum of Natural History at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences has a history of more than one hundred and thirty years. It is the oldest museum in Bulgaria and the oldest and richest among the natural history museums on the Balkan Peninsula… [more]