Royal Tyrrell Museum Review: The Dinosaur Museum in Drumheller, Alberta-- Is it Worth the Visit? Part 1

The Royal Tyrrell Museum is a well-known Canadian tourist attraction near Drumheller

, Alberta. It is Canada's only museum dedicated solely to the science of palaeontology and is operated by the Government of Alberta's Ministry of Culture and Community Spirit. The museum is noted for its collection of over 120,000 fossils and holds one of the world's largest displays of dinosaurs. Sounds impressive, but is it really worth visiting? There are so many boring, over-priced museums out there so is this one any different? I just went with my family a few days ago, so I am going to give you all the facts and you can decide for yourself if it is worth the trip.

History

The Royal Tyrrell Museum was named after Joseph Burr Tyrrell, a 26 year old geologist who was working for the Geological Survey of Canada. On August 12, 1884 Tyrrell stumbled upon Canada's first known man-eating dinosaur skull, just a few kilometers from where the museum stands today. His find led to the first rush of fossil searching in the Canadian Badlands. In the course of time, Alberta became known for its rich fossil resources. Palaeontologists from all over Canada and the U.S. came to search for the finest specimens. The years 1910-1917 eventually became known as the "Great Dinosaur Rush".

On September 25, 1985 the Royal Tyrrell Museum was officially opened. Occupying 12,100m and costing $27.5 million, it is the largest palaeontology-dedicated museum in the western hemisphere. In the first year, the museum attracted over 500,000 visitors. In 1990, the museum was given "Royal" status by Queen Elizabeth II. Now the museum is over 121,000 square feet and in August 2010 welcomed its 10 millionth visitor.

Exhibits

There are 11 exhibits currently at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. The first is Cretaceous Alberta where you can explore Alberta as it was when dinosaurs walked the earth. Then there is the Science Hall exhibit where you can discover the basics of palaeontology through hands-on activities. The preparation Lab is where you can watch as fossils are prepared for research and display. Discover some of the most rare, fragile and scientifically significant pieces with the Lord of the Lands exhibit. This one was one of my favorites because it featured little raptors perched on top of pedestals, dramatic death poses and a massive Tyrannosaurus Rex which is the largest known theropod (Beast Foot) found in North America. Next explore the Burgess Shale and the Devonian Reef, the underwater world of Alberta years ago. The next exhibit is the Terrestrial Paleozoic, then the cretaceous Garden where you can stroll through Canada's largest collection of prehistoric plants. Walk among one of the world's largest collections of dinosaur skeletons in the Dinosaur Hall. The Age of Mammals is the most recent era exhibit in the Royal Tyrrell Museum. One of the most well known era's is the Ice Age and in this exhibit you can see a giant mammoth, mastodons and Sabre-toothed tigers. The kids especially enjoyed this part because one of their favorite movies is "Ice Age".

Next, to find out about the museums Special Exhibitions, Programs, and School Programs go to "Part 2" of thisRoyal Tyrrell Museum Reviewfor the rest of this article.

Royal Tyrrell Museum Review: The Dinosaur Museum in Drumheller, Alberta-- Is it Worth the Visit? Part 1

By: Shawn Hamm

POST COMMENT

Royal Tyrrell Museum Review - The Dinosaur Museum in Drumheller, AB - Is it Worth the Visit? Part 2 The Park Catalog Review & Coupon Code Does Phen375 Work? Phen375 Review Flip Ultrahd Camcorder Review CPA instruments (by Ritoban C) with 9 modules : CPA instruments Reviews Mindstorms NXT 2.0 8547 Review (512) Amo Latina Review Salt Movie review Leveling Guide Review In Aion You Can Keep Track Of Growing Tomato Plants Using A Tiny Amount Of Money This Week Shaiya Assassins Guide(Shaiya Money) Lenovo Ideapad Y510 Review Titlekey: 'matt Huston's Ex2 System' Review