The Evolution Store

5 star review

January 2026. I saw someone recommend this store on YouTube. I went around 5 PM, and although I saw it closed at 7 PM, I decided to come anyway, and I'm so glad I did! It's like a mini museum in the heart of downtown New York City, where you can buy all sorts of specimens and fossils!! It's truly the coolest store I've ever seen! They have all kinds of stones, fossils, insects, and animal specimens—you name it, they have it! You'll be amazed. They even have large animal specimens and a dinosaur head. I heard that only the dinosaur head is fake; everything else is real! But even that dinosaur head is a museum-quality specimen! I highly recommend everyone to come here. I bought a small composite fossil card for $12. I think the items are actually quite reasonably priced, making it a great place to buy souvenirs for friends! Plus, the staff are all very nice and willing to share things with you.

5 star review

I love this store! I visit whenever I'm in NYC. They have a large selection of scientific specimens and natural world items. Skulls, gemstones, meteorites, aquatic items, fossils, and so much more. Anyone looking for interesting items for themselves or as a gift, should make it a point to go to the Evolution Store.

What a cool store! There were so many fossils and crystals and shells. There were also items for various price ranges, they had some fossils has low as $40 and bigger pieces as well. I got a small crystal duck which is so cute, definitely worth a stop in!

My favorite place on the planet. I feel like Charles Darwin in here. Best spot to get bio majors niche gifts.

📍New York’s Evolution Store is a museum you can shop in. Think hot-pink lollipops with scorpions inside, life-size human skeletons, and butterflies suspended in resin. This isn’t the Museum of Natural History, but the Evolution Store — a science-and-art lover’s paradise in Greenwich Village that has been fascinating locals and tourists for 25 years. In a city dominated by chain stores and luxury brands, the Evolution Store stands out as a rare family-owned business that’s not just surviving, but thriving. It’s best known for its framed insects and oddities: bug candy, shark specimens, taxidermied piranhas, turtle shells, alligator heads — even dinosaur teeth. The store was founded in 1993 by William “Bill” Stevens, and is now run by his daughter, Julianna Stevens, who quite literally grew up above the shop. After initially studying psychology, she returned home, learned the business from the ground up, and never left. Many of the store’s biggest fans eventually become employees. Most have backgrounds in art or science, and are trained to answer the endless stream of curious questions from visitors.

The environment is really quiet and the staff won't disturb you while you admire these beautiful artworks. It's definitely a place worth visiting