The museum is housed in the oldest public museum building in the country, opened in 1683 as the original Ashmolean Museum. The displays include scientific instruments dating back to antiquity, fine Islamic and European astrolobes, a comprehensive collection of early chemical apparatus, watches and clocks, medical instruments, the original penicillin apparatus and Einstein's blackboard.

Globes and especially astrolabes figure amongst the displays. The astrolabe collection is the largest and most important in the world; it includes European instruments from as early as the 13th century and an Islamic example from the 9th century.