The Aathal Dinosaur Museum (Swiss German native name: Sauriermuseum Aathal) is a
paleontological museum in the locality ''
Aathal'' of the
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
of
Seegräben in the
canton of Zürich
The canton of Zürich (german: Kanton Zürich ; rm, Chantun Turitg; french: Canton de Zurich; it, Canton Zurigo) is a Swiss canton in the northeastern part of the country. With a population of (as of ), it is the most populous canton in the ...
,
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, and one of the few
dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...
museums in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
.
History
Hans-Jakob Siber, a mineral and fossil dealer, started in 1977 to exhibit temporarily a fossilized giant turtle from four and a half meters in length at his annual special show in
Aathal, and was featuring the eight-meter-long skeleton of an ''
Edmontosaurus
''Edmontosaurus'' ( ) (meaning "lizard from Edmonton") is a genus of hadrosaurid (duck-billed) dinosaur. It contains two known species: ''Edmontosaurus regalis'' and ''Edmontosaurus annectens''. Fossils of ''E. regalis'' have been found in rocks ...
'' four years later. In 1992 the collection was expanded and in 1993 the ''Sauriermuseum Aathal'' in the current building was opened. The family-owned company ''Siber + Siber'' supported the funding of the further activities.
Museum and excavations
Museum
The former building of the ''Baumwollspinnerei Streiff & Cie'' weaving mill in Aathal was built in 1903 and houses the museum on about , including the outside park on the surrounding property.
The focus is on the museum's own excavations and original dinosaur bones, 19 special exhibitions and subsequently integrated new finds. A shop, a cafeteria and a park for children (''Dino-Gardino'') are sections of the museum.
Among around 645 exhibits, there are skeletons, reproductions and originals finds of ''
Stegosaurus'',
Ankylosaurs
Ankylosauria is a group of herbivorous dinosaurs of the order Ornithischia. It includes the great majority of dinosaurs with armor in the form of bony osteoderms, similar to turtles. Ankylosaurs were bulky quadrupeds, with short, powerful limbs. ...
,
Pterosaurs
Pterosaurs (; from Greek ''pteron'' and ''sauros'', meaning "wing lizard") is an extinct clade of flying reptiles in the order, Pterosauria. They existed during most of the Mesozoic: from the Late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous (228 to ...
, 'featured' Dinosaurs, ''
Archaeopteryx
''Archaeopteryx'' (; ), sometimes referred to by its German name, "" ( ''Primeval Bird''), is a genus of bird-like dinosaurs. The name derives from the ancient Greek (''archaīos''), meaning "ancient", and (''ptéryx''), meaning "feather" ...
'' eggs and embryos and footprints, as well as meteorites and minerals of ''Siber + Siber''.
The collection includes 10 skeletons being finds from excavations by the museum's team, 10 further original skeletons from Dino, air and marine saurians, 19 detached skeleton fossil dinosaur replicas as well as 31 life-size dinosaur models and 42 replicas of dinosaurs and dinosaur skulls. In 2012 there were 437 guided tours, of which about three hundred for school classes, and since 1992 about 1,571,012 visitors.
The staff of the museum consists of approximately 33 employees, of which six are members of the paleontological-scientific team.
Excavations
Beginning in the early 1990s, Hans-Jakob Siber and his team perform excavations on the Howe Ranch in the upper Jurassic
Morrison Formation
The Morrison Formation is a distinctive sequence of Late Jurassic, Upper Jurassic sedimentary rock found in the western United States which has been the most fertile source of dinosaur fossils in North America. It is composed of mudstone, sandsto ...
, and since 2010 in the Dana-Quarry, Ten Sleep, Big Horn Basin, Wyoming, USA. Skeletons are recovered and subsequently dissected, mounted and exhibited in Aathal. The excavation technique is presented in the museum, and the taxidermists may be seen at work in the so-called ''Schaupräparatorium''.
Facilities
Public transportation is provided by the S-Bahn Zürich line
S14 (ZVV) to Aathal railway station. The museum is located about from the station towards
Uster.
The museum is closed on Mondays. After hours visits are available by appointment,
as well as guided tours for groups.
Cultural heritage of national importance
In the
, the museum respectively the ''Baumwollspinnerei Streiff & Cie'' building is listed as a ''Class A'' object of national importance.
References
External links
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*
{{authority control
1993 establishments in Switzerland
Museums established in 1993
Museums in the canton of Zürich
Dinosaur museums
Natural history museums in Switzerland
Fossil museums
Paleontology in Switzerland
Cultural property of national significance in the canton of Zürich
Seegräben