American Museum of Natural History Research Library
author: American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History. Hall of Human Biology.; American Museum of Natural History. Hall of Biology of Man.; American Museum of Natural History. Hall of the Biology of Man.; Hall of Human Biology; Hall of the Biology of Man; Hall of Biology of Man; Biology of Man Hall; Biology of Man; Hall of Human Biology and Evolution; Human Biology and Evolution
birth: 1961
death: 2006
Permanent exhibition. Opened March 20, 1961 and closed 2005-2006. Located on Floor 1, Section 4. The Hall of Human Biology at the American Museum of Natural History covered topics in physical anthropology. Completed as part of the ten-year expansion program to create more modern halls, the Hall of the Biology of Man, as it was then called, took the place of the Hall of the Natural History of Man in concept (1, 1959/60, p. 11). The hall was originally conceived by curator Harry L. Shapiro (1, 1960/61, p. 25). In an effort led by curator Ian Tattersall, the hall was redesigned between 1982 and 1992 and reopened as the Hall of Human Biology and Evolution (1, 1982/83 p. 2; 1, 1989/90, p. 3).
Planning for the hall began around 1952 with the purpose of explaining "the anatomy, functions, and development of the human body, some of its basic responses to external conditions and events, and some of the biological aspects of the association of human beings in populations and communities” (1, 1952/53, p. 49).
The original hall was divided into three sections. The first section covered the story of the human species, its relationship to other vertebrates, and its evolution. The second section covered the functioning of human physiological systems down to the microscopic level. The third section showed biological phenomena associated with groups by population, genetics, demographics, and relationship to the environment (2, 1962, p.15). Other exhibits included replica heads of early hominids and the Transparent Woman, a clear model showing internal organs (3, 1972, p. 123-126).
Following the remodeling in the early 1990s, the hall began with a discussion of DNA and continued with displays of vertebrate and mammalian body systems, and primate and human evolution through the earliest archaeological evidence of human artistic creativity. The Hall of Human Biology featured four life-size dioramas of early hominids: Australopithecus afarenis, Homo ergaster, Neanderthal, and Cro-Magnon. Other exhibits included casts of skeletons of Lucy, Turkana Boy, and Peking Man, replicas of Ice Age art from the Dordogne region of France, and a diorama of a skeleton family in a living room watching a videotape of how the skeleton and muscles function (4, 1993, p. 31; 4, 2001, p. 46). The hall was replaced by the Anne and Bernard Spitzer Hall of Human Origins, which opened in 2007.