South China's largest comprehensive natural history museum opens in Shenzhen

(ECNS) -- South China’s largest comprehensive natural history museum opened to the public on Tuesday in Shenzhen.

Located in the Yanzi Lake area of Pingshan District, the Shenzhen Natural History Museum has a total floor area of 105,300 square meters. Its exterior is inspired by coastal sea cliffs, while five cone-shaped main structures form a streamlined silhouette.

The Shenzhen Natural History Museum holds its grand opening ceremony on July 28, 2026. (Photo: China News Service / Chen Jimin)

The museum features eight permanent exhibition halls themed around the Cosmos, Earth, Evolution, Dinosaurs, Humans, Biology, Ecology and Homeland.

It houses 7,461 authentic specimens, 338 replica models and 194 interactive exhibits, presenting a chronological account of the universe and the history of life on Earth.

The museum aims to become South China’s leading innovative natural history museum, a comprehensive public education center for natural science, and a platform showcasing ecological progress under Chinese modernization.

At the opening ceremony, the museum signed strategic cooperation agreements with other museums and academic institutions to jointly establish a leading center for natural science communication across the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Visitors flock to the newly-opened Shenzhen Natural History Museum on its first day, July 28, 2026. (Photo: China News Service / Chen Jimin)

Wan Shilin, executive deputy director of the National Natural History Museum of China, said the new museum fills a long-standing gap in large-scale natural science venues in South China and will help promote natural science education across the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

(By Helen Mo, intern Xu Wenda)