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# New York City Museums Decked Out for the Holidays
- URL: https://hyperallergic.com/new-york-city-museums-decked-out-for-the-holidays/
- Published: 2017-12-22T22:13:35.000Z
- Updated: 2025-11-24T16:25:44.000Z
- Description: From dinosaur-shaped trees to quirky menorahs, here are six of our favorite holiday decorations at New York City museums.
- Author: Elena Goukassian
- Tags: Art, American Museum of Natural History, Metropolitan Museum of Art, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 07:30(2016, 2017, part 3)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/12/img_6198_met-christmas.jpg)

The Christmas Tree at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (photo by Letícia Wouk Almino)

It’s December, and that means holiday lights everywhere. While the [boutiques along Fifth Avenue](https://hyperallergic.com/bergdorf-windows-celebrate-cultural-institutions/) and the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center always get all the attention (not to mention the [decked-out houses of particularly enthusiastic residents](https://www.amny.com/things-to-do/holiday-lights-nyc-1.15260213?ref=hyperallergic.com)), there are plenty of other New York City establishments that hold their own when it comes to decorations, particularly museums. Here are some of our favorites. 

## Best (Technically) Edible Decoration: The Metropolitan Museum of Art 

Every year, [the Met installs a tree (complete with Neapolitan nativity scene)](https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2017/christmas-tree?ref=hyperallergic.com) in front of its 18th-century Spanish choir screen from the Cathedral of Valladolid. This year, the museum’s pastry chef has also created a holiday sugar sculpture, on view outside the cafeteria.

## Best Animal Topiary Trees: American Museum of Natural History

The American Museum of Natural History is known for its [Origami Holiday Tree](https://www.amnh.org/calendar/origami-holiday-tree?ref=hyperallergic.com), but I’d argue that the real treat are the two dinosaur-shaped trees that flank the main entrance. (Unfortunately, that hated Roosevelt equestrian statue is still there, too, but [perhaps not for too much longer](https://hyperallergic.com/over-120-prominent-artists-and-scholars-call-on-nyc-to-take-down-racist-monuments/).)

## Best Staten Island Display: Historic Richmond Town

Celebrating Christmas like it’s 1650, Staten Island’s [historic town and farm museum](https://www.historicrichmondtown.org/?ref=hyperallergic.com) has an array of era-specific holiday decorations and special [candlelit tours](https://www.historicrichmondtown.org/candlelight-tours?ref=hyperallergic.com) to show them off — treats included, of course.

## Best Original Menorahs: Museum at Eldridge Street

The Museum at Eldridge Street’s Chanukah exhibition, [*Let There Be Light! Menorahs from the Collection of the Lori and David Moore Family*](https://www.eldridgestreet.org/event/exhibit-opening-menorahs-from-the-lori-and-david-moore-family/?ref=hyperallergic.com), features more than 150 menorahs from the Moore family’s collection, with examples both traditional and refreshingly quirky.

## Best Subtle Fire Escape Lights: Park Avenue Armory

The [Park Avenue Armory](http://www.armoryonpark.org/?ref=hyperallergic.com) has wreaths outside its doors and decorated trees inside the building, but the real highlight is on the side of the building, a “fire escape made of stars,” as one Instagram user put it.

## Best Holiday Trains: The New-York Historical Society and New York Transit Museum

The tradition of encircling the family tree with a toy train has led to a recurring seasonal train nostalgia. The New-York Historical Society’s [*Holiday Express: Toys and Trains from the Jerni Collection*](http://www.nyhistory.org/exhibitions/holiday-express-toys-and-trains-jerni-collection-2?ref=hyperallergic.com) showcases vintage train sets, while the New York Transit Museum’s [*Annual Holiday Train Show*](http://www.nytransitmuseum.org/exhibits-collections/exhibits/?ref=hyperallergic.com) creates a miniature New York City encircled by trains. If you prefer your vintage trains life-size, the Transit Museum’s ever-popular [Holiday Nostalgia Trains](http://www.nytransitmuseum.org/holidaynostalgiarides/?ref=hyperallergic.com) run on the MTA tracks on the Upper East Side on Sundays.