Windows on Nature: The Great Habitat Dioramas of the American Museum of Natural History Hardcover – March 1, 2006

After visiting the American Museum of Natural History In New York City earlier this summer, and admiring their amazing dioramas featuring taxidermied specimens, I discovered that this book existed and had to own it. Since it’s arrival, I have combed through the pages and read the history of how this beautiful museum created. Some of the most spectacular permanent exhibits I’ve ever seen. This book is second to none and really should be reprinted.

I have been going to the American Museum of Natural History since about age 4 (I am long past four...and even forty!) Unlike other things that were fun in childhood and diminish in interest with age, the American Museum of Natural History continues to fascinate me. This book has added a whole new dimension to that fascination.I never fully appreciated the artistry that went into these dioramas - and it is not a hyperbole to say blood sweat and tears as several exhibition leaders were attacked by animals or died of illness collecting these specimens.This book is a combination of beautifully done photographs (far better than anything you can get with your camera there), stories of the people that made the dioramas and extensive information on how the dioramas were made, covering the taxidermy, scene painting, and other modeling.Read this before you visit and it will enhance your trip there. Read it after and you'll want to go back! Highly recommended.

This book is beyond wonderful! For anyone who grew up in New York City, and visited the Museum of Natural History (school trip?) this will bring back memories of standing in front of these huge, realistic dioramas with your mouth open! Guests of the Museum hardly ever think how they got there, who painted them, how they did the research. This book will make you fall in love all over again. Hard to believe that these marvelous paintings were done 50-75 years ago, and they have never been moved out for a more modern exhibit! That's classy!

Really happy with my purchase, in good condition, arrived before it was due.

The snippets and behind-the-scenes look at how the various dioramas were originally conceived, researched and designed are both insightful and refreshing. It educates the reader on how each dioramic display was painstakingly recreated to portray the most authentic environment that the different taxidermised animals would have roamed, grazed and hunted.A great read - the only 'complaint' I have is that it features very heavily on Northern American wildlife and very little on Asian, African and South American wildlife. Perhaps a Volume 2 of 'WINDOWS ON NATURE' can be considered to fill that void.

I had this in my hands in the second-floor gift shop at the museum. I passed. It nagged me for years. Thank you for for the closure! --Jeff

I barely looked up from this book once I received it. The stories behind the dioramas are out of this world, and nothing like you would expect. My two favorites were "Leopard" and "Mandrill", both sharing chilling accounts of how an animal specimen was acquired and the real life danger that accompanied every expedition. I never gave much thought to the idea that the displays were once very much alive and wild, but this book gave me a whole new a whole new perspective.

Beautiful and interesting. A great way to find out about the adventurers who collected the animals and the artists who constructed the dioramas in the Museum. Also describes how the dioramas are maintained. Best as a pre or post trip to the Museum itself.

Very instructive and interesting, high quality pictures; I’m very satisfied!

Ce livre est magique ! Très beau et instructif. Il est entièrement en anglais, il faut donc soit prendre le temps de traduire, soit parler couramment la langue.

Der Blick hinter die Kulissen der Entstehung und Gestaltung der Großdioramen gepaart mit sehr vielen wunderschönen und großformatigen Abbildungen machen dieses Buch zu einem echtem Schmuckstück.

Un livre qui arrive à retranscrire toute l'atmosphère si particulière de ce musée d'histoire naturelle à nul autre pareil... UNE REUSSITE !!!