Naturkundemuseum
Paleontology has been such a big thing for our family. So it is a surprise to me that we haven't spent a lot of time in Natural History Museums outside of Pittsburgh. In our defense, the Carnegie Museum has one of the oldest and largest collection of vertebrate fossils in North America, and when we have visited other cities with notable paleontology departments, we have been short on time.
However, we had a week in Berlin, and its Naturkundemuseum was high on our itinerary. Myles was particularly ready to go. He had read so much about Berlin's collection, both before World War II and after, that he was well prepared to tell us about everything. About the Spinosaurus they used to have. About the Archaeopteryx they still did.
I particularly love going to Natural History Museums because it is one of the few occasions that Brigid really shows admiration for her brother. At one point recently she declared that she might prefer her science lessons this year to be about paleontology and taught by Myles.
We spent an afternoon at Naturkundemuseum, though we could have spent much more (a complaint of all travel, I think).
The dinosaur parts of the museum did not disappoint. We were greeted by this allosaurus poking its head through a window.
I really do like the trends in natural history museums to bring dinosaurs to life as much as possible for the visitors. Around the dinosaur hall were what they called Jurascopes, that, when pointed toward a given fossil, would flesh out that dinosaur and show animation of it eating or hunting or whatever.
The specimens on display in the main dinosaur hall were mostly of the Jurassic Period. The highlight was this amazing dinosaur that had once been identified as a brachiosaurus. More recently the scientists have identified it as a Giraffatitan brancai, and it is the tallest mounted dinosaur fossil in the world.
There was among their own dinosaurs a cast of a familiar skeleton, Pittsburgh's own diplodicus carnegii. Like the Warhol at Sanssouci, it was fun to bump into an old friend unexpectedly in Berlin.
The Archaeopteryx was in its own little alcove, almost like a shrine. This fossil survived World War II, and is one of the most important specimens of its kind in the world.
There was one incredible Tyrannasourus Rex on display, but in a space separate from the main dinosaur hall. This specimen had an interesting provenance. Unusually, it was privately owned, though the two investors made the T. Rex available to museums for study and display. It was the first original T. Rex to be housed in a European museum.
The fossil was named Tristan Otto, after the owners' sons. The skull atop the mounted body was a light-weight 3-D printed. The actual fossilized skull is the most complete ever found. Exhibiting the skull apart from the rest of the body allowed scientists to access the bones regularly as well as allow budding paleontologists to get really close to something this awesome.
The information about Tristan was presented in several multimedia-type methods. There were regular screens with maps and anatomy, but there were also these ghostly flexible screens upon wich text, images, and videos were projected. These were cool because they performed the job while keeping an open feeling to the room.
In the museum there was also a special exhibit about macaws (Ara in German), with an emphasis on extinction and their disappearing habitats. What was particularly interesting was the approach: what can average Germans do at home that impacts something so far away?
In addition to not contributing to exotic pet smuggling, there were consumer and energy choices that the exhibit explained ordinary Germans could make that would help stop the destruction of macaw's homes.
While the Ara exhibit was in bright, exuberant colors, it was incredibly sobering.
I was really glad we went to the Naturkundemuseum, but of course, we only saw a fraction of what they offered. It was, for us, an important fraction.
However, we had a week in Berlin, and its Naturkundemuseum was high on our itinerary. Myles was particularly ready to go. He had read so much about Berlin's collection, both before World War II and after, that he was well prepared to tell us about everything. About the Spinosaurus they used to have. About the Archaeopteryx they still did.
I particularly love going to Natural History Museums because it is one of the few occasions that Brigid really shows admiration for her brother. At one point recently she declared that she might prefer her science lessons this year to be about paleontology and taught by Myles.
We spent an afternoon at Naturkundemuseum, though we could have spent much more (a complaint of all travel, I think).
The dinosaur parts of the museum did not disappoint. We were greeted by this allosaurus poking its head through a window.
I really do like the trends in natural history museums to bring dinosaurs to life as much as possible for the visitors. Around the dinosaur hall were what they called Jurascopes, that, when pointed toward a given fossil, would flesh out that dinosaur and show animation of it eating or hunting or whatever.
The specimens on display in the main dinosaur hall were mostly of the Jurassic Period. The highlight was this amazing dinosaur that had once been identified as a brachiosaurus. More recently the scientists have identified it as a Giraffatitan brancai, and it is the tallest mounted dinosaur fossil in the world.
There was among their own dinosaurs a cast of a familiar skeleton, Pittsburgh's own diplodicus carnegii. Like the Warhol at Sanssouci, it was fun to bump into an old friend unexpectedly in Berlin.
The Archaeopteryx was in its own little alcove, almost like a shrine. This fossil survived World War II, and is one of the most important specimens of its kind in the world.
There was one incredible Tyrannasourus Rex on display, but in a space separate from the main dinosaur hall. This specimen had an interesting provenance. Unusually, it was privately owned, though the two investors made the T. Rex available to museums for study and display. It was the first original T. Rex to be housed in a European museum.
The fossil was named Tristan Otto, after the owners' sons. The skull atop the mounted body was a light-weight 3-D printed. The actual fossilized skull is the most complete ever found. Exhibiting the skull apart from the rest of the body allowed scientists to access the bones regularly as well as allow budding paleontologists to get really close to something this awesome.
The information about Tristan was presented in several multimedia-type methods. There were regular screens with maps and anatomy, but there were also these ghostly flexible screens upon wich text, images, and videos were projected. These were cool because they performed the job while keeping an open feeling to the room.
In the museum there was also a special exhibit about macaws (Ara in German), with an emphasis on extinction and their disappearing habitats. What was particularly interesting was the approach: what can average Germans do at home that impacts something so far away?
In addition to not contributing to exotic pet smuggling, there were consumer and energy choices that the exhibit explained ordinary Germans could make that would help stop the destruction of macaw's homes.
While the Ara exhibit was in bright, exuberant colors, it was incredibly sobering.
I was really glad we went to the Naturkundemuseum, but of course, we only saw a fraction of what they offered. It was, for us, an important fraction.
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