Hall of Vertebrate Origins

At AMNH Exhibitions, the Hall of Vertebrate Origins traces the long transition from early fishes to the first land-dwelling vertebrates, using fossils, skeletal mounts, and evolutionary diagrams to map deep time into a walkable sequence. It places New York City’s museum tradition in view, echoing the AMNH’s role in bringing paleontology into public life since the 19th century. The hall’s strength is its clarity about anatomy and change across millions of years, even if some sections feel anchored to an older exhibition language. It treats evolution as evidence, not metaphor.