Response to FOI request 'Total number of objects in the Natural History Museum's collection'
Freedom of Info
The Natural History Museum
6 May 2008
Dear Mr Roberto
Thank you for your request for information on the total number of objects in the collections of the Natural History Museum, received on 4 May 2008.
The estimated total of biological and geological specimens (ie in our science collections) is currently 70.6 million.
This is arrived at by each relevant curator estimating the total amount of specimens in their collections which the departments then collate to give as a department total.
We also have a total of 5 million items in the Library and Archives which give us a total holding of 75.6 million items for the entire Museum rather than just the science collections.
If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision, you should write to me in the first instance, or to the FOI Coordinator, Museum Archives, Library & Information Services, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD.
If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the Natural History Museum. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
Yours sincerely
Polly Tucker
FOI Coordinator
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