Old Wing

In the older of these two buildings, human, scientific and natural marvels are brought to life in zones that highlight world cultures, evolution and the natural world, design and fashion, technology and the remarkable exploits of Scottish inventors, engineers and scientists through the ages. Look out for grotesque masks, elaborate costumes and remarkable sculptures from Asia, Africa and South America on Level 3 and Level 4, and don’t miss the late Dolly the Sheep, the world’s first cloned mammal.

New Wing

The modern sandstone wing has been heralded as one of the most important constructs in postwar Scotland, and its exhibits are dedicated to the story of the country and its people .Begin your journey through the centuries with the prehistoric relics on the basement Level 0 and ascend floor by floor to the 21st century, on Level 6. Pause to admire exhibits including Pictish symbol stones with their mysterious carvings, the elaborately carved walrus-ivory Lewis Chessmen, carved by Viking craftsmen in the 12th century, Highland silver and weaponry, and the fearsome Maiden, a 16th-century ancestor of the guillotine.

t Grand Gallery, designed by Captain Francis Fowke and completed in 1888

Experience Edinburgh

t Dolly the Sheep, the first mammal cloned from an adult cell in 1996