Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Taktsang Lhakhang, also known as the “Tiger’s Nest”.
Bhutan • 11 days, 10 nights
Festivals & Temples of Bhutan
from
Macchu Picchu
Peru • 10 days, 9 nights
Peru: Machu Picchu & the Last Incan Bridges
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Mosaic in Beachfront Park.
Tsunami Walking Tour
Madam Yoko’s gravesite.
Madam Yoko’s Grave
Garden path.
Garden of the Presidential Mansion
Anabaptist Cages
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Aerial view of Bell Labs Holmdel
How the Bell Labs Holmdel Complex Inspired ‘Severance’
4 days ago
Omni Parker House Hotel
The Omni Parker House: Inside the History of Boston’s Most Iconic Hotel
5 days ago
The cute capybara.
Animal Takeover: Brace Yourself for Adorable Hordes
6 days ago
The Codex Gigas (the Devil’s Bible) open to the portrait of the devil.
Codex Gigas: Who Drew the Devil in This Massive Medieval Bible?
7 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Italy Genoa Civic Museum of Natural History Giacomo Doria

Civic Museum of Natural History Giacomo Doria

Genoa's collection of over 4 million zoological, botanical, and geological specimens from around the world.

Genoa, Italy

Added By
streifenwolf
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Bird room.   Daderot/CC0 1.0
Bird room.   Daderot/CC0 1.0
Insect room.   Daderot/CC0 1.0
The Museum’s Facade   Cymothoa Exigua/CC BY-SA 3.0
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Walking through this natural history museum’s 23 rooms, which house over 4 million zoological, botanical, and geological specimens from all over the world, you may recognize a familiar name. There's Doria's tree kangaroo, Doria's cave beetle, and Doria's slug, and many other species that bear the name of the prolific naturalist who founded the museum, Marquis Giacomo Doria.

An avid entomologist and herpetologist, Giacomo Doria spent the early 1860s collecting samples of various plants, insects, and animals in Persia, the Red Sea, and Tunisia. He was an influential figure in Genoa, and in 1867 the Genoa City Council unanimously approved his proposal to fund a Civic Museum of Natural History (Museo Civico di Storia Naturale), which also bears his name. Giacomo Doria served as its director until his death in 1913.

The museum's specialized books on animals and insects represent the largest Italian library on the subjects, and the collection of insects and fauna is overwhelming. The collection is so massive it had to be moved to a specially designed building in 1912. 

Though the exhibits in the museum are not translated from Italian, the experience is an educational and charming one even if you don't speak the language. Among the more modern items are antique taxidermic animals, and speakers pump out recordings of the sounds of birds and tigers.

Related Tags

Museums Museums And Collections Insects Reptiles

Know Before You Go

The museum is about a 15-minute walk from the Piazza De Ferrari. Entry tickets are very affordable.

Atlas Obscura Adventures

Flavors of Italy: Roman Carbonara, Florentine Steak & Venetian Cocktails

Savor local cuisine across Rome, Florence & Venice.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

streifenwolf

Published

September 28, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Civic Museum of Natural History Giacomo Doria
9 Via Brigata Liguria
Genoa
Italy
44.40252, 8.942727
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Genoa Cathedral

Genoa, Italy

miles away

Palazzo San Giorgio

Genoa, Italy

miles away

Genova-Casella Railway

Genoa, Italy

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Genoa

Genoa

Italy

Places 11
Stories 1

Nearby Places

Genoa Cathedral

Genoa, Italy

miles away

Palazzo San Giorgio

Genoa, Italy

miles away

Genova-Casella Railway

Genoa, Italy

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Genoa

Genoa

Italy

Places 11
Stories 1

Related Places

  • The Bee Museum, Rhodes.

    Rhodes, Greece

    Bee Museum of Rhodes

    Learn about the sweet, storied legacy of beekeeping in ancient Greece.

  • Beautifully pinned insects

    Santa Fe, New Mexico

    The Harrell House Bug Museum

    Thousands of mounted insects, and some live ones, hide within an otherwise ordinary shopping mall.

  • Beetles

    Santiago de Querétaro, Mexico

    Museo Bichos Querétaro (Querétaro Bugs Museum)

    One man's personal collection of more than 2,000 creepy-crawlies from around the world.

  • Butterflies at Insectropolis in New Jersey.

    Toms River, New Jersey

    Insectropolis

    A "Bugseum" dedicated to all things insect-related resides behind a pest control company.

  • One of many beautiful dioramas.

    Pokhara, Nepal

    Annapurna Natural History Museum Butterfly Collection

    Feast your eyes upon hundreds of Nepal's native butterflies and moths.

  • The inside of Welt der Gifte

    Salzburg, Austria

    Welt der Gifte

    At this exhibit on the world of poison, venomous animals steal the show.

  • Specimens on display.

    Nagasaki, Japan

    Museum of Tropical Medicine

    A hub of information on tropical diseases and their treatments.

  • One of many cases of butterflies at the Daintree Entomological Museum.

    Diwan, Australia

    Daintree Entomological Museum

    Australia's largest collection of rare and bizarre insects.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.