The Natural History Museum and the Science Museum had the most epic fight on Twitter, and LOL
When you think of science-based museums, you don’t immediately think of comedy, right? Well, brace yourselves. London’s Natural History Museum and its Science Museum are fighting on Twitter, and things are getting pretty hilarious.
Earlier this week, Twitter user @Bednarz asked the museums, “Who would win in a staff battle between @sciencemuseum and @NHM_London. What exhibits/items would help you be victorious? #askacurator.”
The curators of the museums’ respective Twitter accounts were ready! It’s almost as if they had already been thinking about it. Between dinosaurs, fire power, and even a good old-fashioned pair of rubber rain boots, the curators went back and forth all day, trying to prove who would win the battle, no contest.
Here are some of the best suggestions.
We have dinosaurs. No contest.
— Natural History Museum (@NHM_London) September 13, 2017
@NHM_London is full of old fossils, but we have robots, a Spitfire and ancient poisons. Boom! #AskACurator https://t.co/lsdOS3HqyO
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 13, 2017
We have robot dinosaurs, Pterodactyls and the most venomous creatures on Earth. Plus volcanoes and earthquakes … And vampire fish. pic.twitter.com/H2dNv0wgQr
— Natural History Museum (@NHM_London) September 13, 2017
Vampire fish? Ancient potions? This is a good fight!
What about this merman & we do have a Polaris nuclear missile as Khalil says! pic.twitter.com/uczMFrvKIw
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 13, 2017
Jenny Haniver sees your merman, never bring a nuke to an earth-shattering meteorite fight, and our cockroach specimens w/ survive us all 😉 pic.twitter.com/mbEgDseZ7G
— Natural History Museum (@NHM_London) September 13, 2017
We'll (hopefully) fight your lava with all our fire engines https://t.co/gRECpigRYt pic.twitter.com/n57QKfDcag
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 13, 2017
*Game of Thrones theme music* Send in the (sea)-dragons… (from The Book of the Great Sea-Dragons by Thomas Hawkins, 1840). pic.twitter.com/K4Duh3w7Vk
— Natural History Museum (@NHM_London) September 13, 2017
It went on, and on, and on.
When the original poster suggested that the war had gone on long enough and the two call it a draw, they still weren’t ready.
Erm… oh, okay then. pic.twitter.com/xQwtLHjt7N
— Natural History Museum (@NHM_London) September 13, 2017
We were all set to call it a draw, but then we saw this. Turns out, we have a dinosaur AND it's 3D printed! pic.twitter.com/vLRK0PI5JE
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 14, 2017
OK, we weren't going to do this, but here come the locusts… Phymateus viridipes, Phymateus karschi, and Ornithacris pictula magnifica… pic.twitter.com/LWq6WfCCB9
— Natural History Museum (@NHM_London) September 14, 2017
Obviously we won't use this DDT Insect Spray (on display in our new Mathematics Gallery) https://t.co/vQzoHMaSD5 so instead…. pic.twitter.com/t3imuW1WqP
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 14, 2017
… we'll fight them off with this Giant Killer, a British-made insect swatter from 1900-1930 https://t.co/gmSJeBurDA pic.twitter.com/jfG0SR54aU
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 14, 2017
You're going to need a bigger swatter. Victorians had to shoot some insects like the Goliath beetle out of the sky https://t.co/K8fRIpiyoL pic.twitter.com/dH1CmSzFNl
— Natural History Museum (@NHM_London) September 14, 2017
Ah, you mean something like this 1860s London-made Enfield carbine rifle? pic.twitter.com/r2sHbF41MN
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 14, 2017
Even *departments* got involved in the duel.
We would have caught the fleas in this Chinese bamboo flea trap (on show in our Making the Modern World gallery) https://t.co/4LI5va8ECv pic.twitter.com/7zWk3gzEgS
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 14, 2017
We have MILLIONS OF FLEAS – that would have to be a massive trap. Drop 🎤
— NHM_Fleas (@NHM_Fleas) September 14, 2017
No mic dropping here, we look after our microphones (like this widely used BBC version from the 1940s) https://t.co/LJLAvQ3pyQ pic.twitter.com/K5ZmDu6CuP
— Science Museum (@sciencemuseum) September 14, 2017
It goes on like that forever and ever…because, well, science geeks really know their stuff.
Obviously, there is no bad blood between the two museums. If anything, it was a super cute way to show off some of the really cool stuff both buildings house. Although we would have loved to be in the office with the respective teams, trying to come up with the best response to every threat. Locusts? Victorian fly swatters? We’re seriously about to book some tickets to London just to go to both museums and see for ourselves.
Later, the Victoria and Albert art museum, which is in the same area, got in on the hashtag fun, trying to call a truce.
Guys… we are all friends here at Exhibition Road! #LoveWins #WeHaveDragonsToo #JustSaying pic.twitter.com/fDFHfYaBo3
— V&A (@V_and_A) September 13, 2017
It’s sort of hard to pick a side, so we’re going to have to go with the V&A and say that if everyone has dragons…everyone wins. Please, museums, never stop fighting.
