What is the most important thing to see at the Field Museum?

What is the most important thing to see at the Field Museum?

The most important thing to see at the Field Museum is that it showcases an evolving planet. Another thing that I enjoy seeing at the Field Museum is the Hall of gems. Something that I find more interesting than any of the other exhibits at the Field Museum is the floor. You know there are fossils in these tiles? The very foundation of our museum is comprised of thousands of invertebrate fossils from 325 million years ago that today is located in Carthage, Missouri. But Wikipedia has no information about a past 325 million years ago any more interesting than when it was founded in 1841. And today, Carthage is more well-known for its role as a Precious Moments Park and Chapel and there is nothing on its page about what it was once known for - being a invertebrate hot spot back in the Carboniferous period which frankly, I find more compelling than anything else 325 million years ago.

Fossils remain in the same place on floors in this building for as long as it stands. More than a million people walk across them every year. My grandparents and I stood on them when we first visited; nearly 20 years ago, I Stand on them during my first journey here. These fossils are tiny witnesses to everyone who has visited and scientific expedition across the past century.

Most visitors never notice the fossils in the floor, which is acceptable given that there are so many other things to see, discussions to have, and stuff to contemplate, and I don't think their stay is any less enjoyable as a result. But I believe it's the kind of meaningful detail that can really help you appreciate the idea that we're all on the same planet and that we've all lived on the same globe. We and the mammoth, Saber cats, dinosaurs, and dimetrodon may trace our ancestors back to 325-million-year-old colonies of bryozoans, brachiopods, and starfish-like organisms.

What I enjoy about museums is that my desire to search out these minor nuances, these significant subtleties that connect us across distance and time is not unique to me. It's something we all go through when we go to a museum. We're all looking for our own version of the fossils in the floor. For example, the most visited blog articles on The Field's website last year came from the collections manager of fossil invertebrates named The Beachgoers guide to Lake Michigan fossils and rocks, which sparked people's interest more than virtually any other page.

I love the thought of visiting a place like the field and seeing the motionless fossils in our limestone. Then go outdoors toward the Adler Planetarium, and down the steps from the taco stand on Lake Michigan's coast, you can find your own ancient universe in the loose beach rocks. Reach down and grab a handful, and you might come face to face with a fossil coral that has traveled for a hundred million years to end up in your hands. It could be the first time that rock has been examined and appreciated for what it truly is.

It still contains brains.