Come Into A New World: Linnaeus and America April 14, 2007

Join the museum to celebrate the 300th birthday of Carolus Linnaeus, the great Swedish naturalist who founded modern biology and named us all Homo sapiens. Through over 100 scientific specimens, drawings, manuscripts, books and works of art, this exhibition explores the many links between Linnaeus and America. It follows his student Peter Kalm, the first trained scientist to observe North American's peoples, wildlife and landscapes from the Delaware Valley to Canada. It presents how Franklin and Jefferson made connections between natural history and national identity -- and why Linnaean ideas still matter to Americans today.