The University of Porto history goes back to the 17th century with the creation of the orphans' college in the field of Olival, now the Jardim da Cordoaria. With the death of its first rector, the administration passes to the senate of the city.
In the next century in the college the nautical class was installed and later also drawing and drawing classes that would be the beginning of the Faculty of Engineering and Fine Arts of Porto, respectively. At the turn of the century there is the will to create a new building to host the new courses with subjects such as mathematics, philosophy, agriculture and others. The new building where the faculty of science was to be established took several years to complete, only to be ready in 1930. The following year the zoology, archeology and prehistory museums, the institute of anthropology and geological sciences.
Later, the building becomes the rectory of the University of Porto housing the administrative services. In 2014 is approved the financing for the creation of the university museum of Natural history that gathers today all the estate of the previous museums.