One of Melbourne's foremost cultural destination, the Melbourne Museum is both an architectural icon and a wonderful repository of natural history. Located next to the Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton Gardens, the museum is part of Museum Victoria which is Australia's largest public museum organisation. Touted as the biggest museum in the Southern Hemisphere, the museum was housed in a modern monolith of massive proportions.
Built in the 1990s in the modern style, the museum was designed by Denton Corker Marshall and constructed at a cost of A$250 million.
This huge whalebone measuring 18 metres from end-to-end belonged to a pygmy Blue Whale washed ashore.
Ethan posing with an Australian dinosaur skeleton (Amargasaurus cazaui) at the entrance.
More dinosaurs at the Evolution Gallery of the museum. I believe they include a Tarbosaurus (a theropod predator similar to T-Rex), Pteranodon, Diplodocus, and a duck-billed Hadrosaur.
Stuffed critters never looked this good. This display came complete with lighted panels that explain the origins of the various native animals.
One of the most fascinating galleries was the one on insects. This panel shows how they truly rule the world rather than us!
Giant blow ups of a spider fangs help to illustrate how different invetebrate mouthparts work in their feeding process. Hairy!
Some of the exhibits were alive too, like this real live bee hive complete with buzzing bees and dripping honey.
Of course, Ethan had to get into the action by trying out this bee dance complete with step-by-step instructions.
Interactive panels like this revolving display at the Marine gallery help to engage little fingers and minds.
Every shark has its day, and here's an exhibit showing how different their jaws can be. "The better to eat you with my dear...."
A giant squid lies placidly in its watery grave with an interesting caption on top. No prizes for guessing that its the Sperm Whale (nothing to do with err... you know) that was its chief predator.
Kids could mix and match different parts and organs of the human body here. An excellent educational tool which captured Ethan's attention.
Large backlit panels help to bring the Australian forest vividly to life.
What's even better is that the museum has a real forest - right in the middle! Now this is what I call a Living Museum!
One of the highlights at the museum was its Children's Gallery. This tall giraffe shows the scale of sizes.
More taxidermised animals on display. This one had them chirping, growling, and squeaking at the press of a button.
Soft toys like these help to delight a 3.75 year old toddler...
... as do these giant-sized Lego bricks in the outdoor play area.
Finally, our intrepid explorers decide to do some fossil searching themselves. Now who says that museums are boring?Labels: attractions, Holiday, lifestyle, Melbourne museum, personal