The Royal Tyrrell Museum, quite possibly the valley’s crown jewel of attraction, is celebrating its 25th birthday this year and is celebrating with an exhibit and party as gargantuan as the museum’s contents.
To kick off its anniversary season, a new exhibit, Alberta Unearthed: 25 stories of discovery, will showcase 25 of the museum’s most significant specimens and the intriguing stories behind them.
May well being the centerpiece of the new exhibit, 'Black Beauty', one of the most complete tyrannosaurus rex fossils in the world, was found in Crowsnest Pass, Alberta by two children fishing.
She is one of many examples of the interesting stories behind the chosen specimens on exhibit.
Selecting 25 specimens from a collection of 130,000 fossils was a challenging task.
“The specimens we chose tell the story of the Royal Tyrrell Museum while highlighting some of the most significant discoveries in modern science,” said Andrew Neuman, the museum’s executive director.
“The result is an incredible exhibit, featuring everything from a stunning tyrannosaurus rex named ‘Black Beauty’ to an exquisite piece of amber, to a flying turtle from China.”
Alberta Unearthed will open to the public Saturday, May 22, and the anniversary celebrations will be held September 17-19. The official Royal Tyrrell Museum birthday party will be held Saturday, September 25.
“The Royal Tyrrell Museum has been making Albertans proud for 25 years,” said Lindsay Blackett, Minister of Alberta Culture and Community Spirit.
Alberta Unearthed is about the people, places, and pieces of heart of Canada’s world renowned dinosaur museum. Amazing stories, extraordinary illustrations and photographs, and spectacular specimens come together in this tribute to a quarter century of scientific success.
The Tyrrell has come far from when it first layed down its mandate to share Alberta’s rich fossil history.
New initiatives set out by the museum include the ambitious distance learning program now being offered.
Students can now have the expertise of a world-renowned Tyrrell palaeontologist broadcast into their classroom via the internet, with interactive and intimate instruction being sent as far as New Zealand.
