Becoming America: How Science Shaped a Nation

SUPPORTED BY GRIFFIN CATALYST Marking 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Becoming America: How Science Shaped a Nation, supported by Griffin Catalyst will uncover the science that shaped and was shaped by land, peoples and power towards the emergence of the United States. Through remarkable maps, stunning paintings and extraordinary instruments and artefacts, this landmark exhibition reveals the scientific undercurrents running through a momentous period of history. Delve into four decisive decades from the 1760s to the first US presidency in the 1790s, when a range of peoples drew on diverse scientific knowledge to navigate, survive and cultivate the American landscape. Becoming America connects the colonial scientific ambition that mapped new borders, excavated prehistoric fossils and established plantations with the knowledge, skills and powerful stories of enslaved and free African-descended peoples, and Indigenous scientific practices that predated the new nation and continue to this day. Get up close to a rare surviving 1776 print of the Declaration of Independence, one of the most famous documents in the Western World, and follow the stories of King George III and George Washington, figureheads of shifting national power across this tumultuous period. The exhibition features objects from the personal collections of the monarch and his former subject turned president, capturing their enthusiasm for science and their use of technology and knowledge to project power. This exhibition brings together the rich and complex scientific history that shaped the founding of a new nation, and whose consequences are still felt 250 years later. Header image: The Bald Eagle, Mark Catesby, 1722–26 © Royal Collection Trust Information Free Exhibition Date: 23 October 2026 – 25 April 2027 Price: Free, ticketed Location: Special Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 2 Age: Recommended for ages 11+ Book museum & Becoming America tickets Title funder