Natural History Museum : During the early 1700s, the 'rooms of wonders' became popular for showcasing collections of creatures rarely seen by Venetians at that time

Natural History Museum : The centerpiece of the museum: a fossilized Ouranosaurus nigerensis, unearthed during an expedition in the Nigerian Sahara

Natural History Museum : From the same expedition: fossils of a giant crocodile dating back over 100 million years

Natural History Museum : This first section of the museum is called 'On the tracks of life' for good reason

Natural History Museum : The long and complex course of evolution culminates with the emergence of the first hominoids

Natural History Museum : Subsequently, the earliest forms of art begin to emerge

Natural History Museum : The second section is called 'The strategies of life'

Natural History Museum : The installations within this section offer a high level of interactivity

Natural History Museum : Part of the museum's allure stems from its beautifully crafted and creatively curated exhibits

Natural History Museum : The third section showcases the rare and intriguing objects collected by Venetian explorers during their voyages

Natural History Museum : Objects collected during Giovanni Miani's 1859 expedition in search of the Nile's source

Natural History Museum : Among the 1,800 discoveries from that expedition are the mummified remains of a local native and of two crocodiles

Natural History Museum : Count Giuseppe de Reali (1877-1937) put together a sizable collection of colonial style items

Natural History Museum : Hunting trophies acquired during his numerous safaris in northern and equatorial Africa

Natural History Museum : Collections from the 18th century, stemming from the systematic scientific studies carried out by Venetian naturalists

Natural History Museum : The massive skeleton of a finback whale, discovered washed ashore near the city of Naples a century ago

Natural History Museum : The entrance to the museum

Natural History Museum : The museum is situated in the historic Fontego dei Turchi, with views overlooking the Canal Grande

Museo di Storia Naturale Giancarlo Ligabue

Natural History Museum

Natural history museum featuring artifacts from Venetian expeditions.

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Standard admission is €10. Free entry with the official city pass.

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Highlights

Historic building

Fondaco dei Turchi, originally constructed for the Pesaro family in the 13th century, later became the residence for Venice's Ottoman Turkish population, hence its name 'dei Turchi'. The main commodities imported from the East by the Turks and traded here were wax, crude oil and wool.

700M years in 3 sections

'On the tracks of life' delves into fossils and paleontology, 'Collecting to astonish, collecting for research' explores the evolution of naturalist collecting during various Venetian expeditions and 'The strategies of life' investigates form and function in living things.

Appeal

Part of the museum's appeal lies in its beautifully crafted and creatively curated exhibits, some of which even include interactive stations.

Large creatures

Spot the fossil of a 7-meter (23-foot) long Ouranosaurus nigeriensis and the skeleton of a 18-meter (60-foot) finback whale.