This DNA model is a replica of the original double helix DNA model built by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953. While similar, this model differs from the original as it has an additional three levels of purine/pyramidine plates at the top. Cited as one of the greatest scientific achievements of the 20th century, the discovery of the structure of DNA unlocked the mechanism of inheritance and fundamentally transformed our understanding of biology and genetics.

By 1950, it was commonly known among scientists that deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was the carrier of genetic information, but its molecular structure had yet to be determined. One of the experiments meant to learn more about its structure was X-ray diffraction which created X-ray images of DNA. The images were not clear or conclusive, however. Rosalind Franklin, a British scientist working with Maurice Wilkins at King’s College, London, produced such DNA X-ray diffraction images, and managed to capture one particular image, the famous “Photograph 51” which suggests that DNA forms a double helix.