Museum of Natural Sciences

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The Museum of Natural Sciences (Dutch Museum voor Natuurwetenschappen , French Muséum des sciences naturelles de Belgique ) is a natural history museum and research institute in Parc Léopold in Brussels . It belongs to the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences and exhibits part of the institute's collection, which comprises a total of 37 million pieces.

The museum is one of the largest natural history museums in Europe. It was founded in 1846, with the collections going back to those of Prince Karl Alexander of Lorraine from the end of the 18th century. From 1889 to 1891 it moved to a former monastery in Parc Léopold, but extensions were soon necessary. The south wing was built between 1898 and 1905 (architect Charles-Émile Janlet). Further additions were made in 1950.

The museum includes the famous Iguanodon finds by Bernissart , which were excavated from 1878 and prepared by Louis Dollo . Skeletons of Tyrannosaurus rex , Diplodocus , Velociraptor , Eoraptor , Olorotitan , Triceratops and Cryolophosaurus are also on display. The museum has an aquarium.

The museum has an extensive library with 650,000 volumes and 7,000 magazine series.

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Coordinates: 50 ° 50 ′ 13.8 "  N , 4 ° 22 ′ 34.2"  E