MUSEUM

The Oertijdmuseum has one of the largest geological collections in the Netherlands, which tells the story of the history of the Netherlands ánd our planet. We exhibit many different fossils and minerals from different eras.

DINOSAUR HALL

In the dinosaur hall, a huge Hatzegopteryx flies above your head and you walk between different dinosaur skeletons. For example, a terrifying T-Rex or a Brachiosaurus of 25 meters long and 11 meters high!

FOUND IN THE NETHERLANDS

Did you know that various fossils have been found in the Netherlands? We have exhibited these small and large finds on the first floor of our exhibition.

MUSEUM SHOP & HORECA

Our museum shop has a wide range of fossils, minerals, jewellery, books and toys. You can enjoy a little snack or get something to drink in our catering area.

OUTDOORS

The prehistoric garden is more than four hectares in size and is located around the museum building. Here you will stand face to face with life-sized dinosaurs. Follow an exciting walking trail through the forest and discover even more animals from prehistoric times. By the way, did you know that there are also fun quests that you can do? These are available on paper, but also digitally.

PLAYGROUND

In the outdoor playground, children can play under the supervision of their parents. During the walk through the garden and forest you will pass various play and rest areas.

ARBORETUM

In the arboretum you will find many trees and shrubs with special properties. There are also ‘living fossils’, which are organisms that already existed tens, sometimes even hundreds of millions of years ago. For more information click here.

SCAVENGER HUNTS AND MORE FUN

LABORATORY

Geological and paleontological research and preparation work is carried out in our laboratories, for our own museum but also on behalf of others. You can see this live during your visit and ask questions to researchers and volunteers. Do you also want to help as a volunteer? Please inform with curator@oertijdmuseum.nl if interested.

SAUROPODS

The Oertijdmuseum has been able to take over several sauropod skeletons from the Saurier Museum Aathal in Switzerland for preparation and assembly. These are the skeletons known as ‘Aurora’, ‘Brösmeli’, ‘Twin’, ‘Triplo’, and ‘XL’. These were found between 1990 and 1996 in Wyoming, USA. First, preparation was done on ‘Brösmeli’ by 50 volunteers in 3 years time. It was thought that this was a Diplodocus, but an intern concluded that it might be an entirely new genus and species. This will become clear in 2022 and the preparation of ‘Aurora’ will also start.