Museum event: Skeletons
- Audience Type:
- General
- Event Type:
- Current exhibition
- Location:
- Level G, Skeletons Exhibition
Turn on your X-ray vision and enter the hall of bones!
Every human and animal skeleton tells a story. Whether they're internal, external, short, flat or hollow, bones speak volumes about the organisms they support. In this fun and fascinating exhibition the Museum takes its skeletons out of the closet for you to see right up close.
Learn what bones are made of; how they mend after being broken or damaged; and discover how different types of skeletons such as fish and water mammals, land creatures and birds have evolved to cope with their specific environments - and why some animals have two, four or no feet!
Discover how humans have endoskeletons (which means our skeletons are on the inside of our skin) while many other creatures like crabs and spiders have skeletons on the outside called exoskeletons.
The Skeletons exhibition is located on Level G of the Museum.
Things to do
- See your own bones at work by riding the popular exercise bike that's attached to a human skeleton. You'll be amazed at how many bones you use!
- Marvel at the scale of Jumbo the elephant who for many years gave rides at Moore Park Zoo.
- Find out where the stresses in bones are by pulling a lever and seeing what gets highlighted.
- Compare the scale of skeletons belonging to familiar domestic creatures including a dog, cat, bird, rat and human sitting in a rocking chair.
- Browse through the Museum Shop on your way out and pick up a skeleton gift or gift about the natural world including books, toys and games, and the Museum's official souvenir guidebook. Great for kids' presents, local and international tourists, or as a treat for yourself.
Touch Table Alert!
Look out for the special touch table in this exhibition, regularly run by Museum staff and volunteers. It features special pieces from our collection that both little and big kids are encouraged to touch, feel and examine at close range. Chat with trained staff about the specimens and catch up on the Museum's latest research work. See the 'What's on' screen next to the information desk on the ground floor for daily times and locations.
Buy General Entry tickets online
Would you like to add a comment?
Sign up to add comments and find out more about the other benefits you can enjoy.
Tags
Author tags
- skeletons
- vertebrates
- internal anatomy
- reptiles
- amphibians
- mammals
- monotremes
- marsupials
- frogs
- snakes
- lizards
- fishes
- fish
- bony fish
- sharks
- rays
- cartilage
- bones
- Bone Ranger
- rocking chair
- human skeleton
- horse
- elephant
- whales
- dolphins
- giraffe
- permanent
- exhibition
- historical
- museum history
- venues
- functions
Would you like to add a tag?
Sign up to add tags and find out more about the other benefits you can enjoy.
Skeletons Exhibition View full size
Carl Bento
© Australian Museum
Skeleton Exhibition 1954 View full size
© Australian Museum
Support us
Help us continue to provide quality research, education, community programs and exhibitions.
Online Shop
Featuring a selection of products relating to the collections.
Australian Museum Members
Join today to come to the Museum for free and enjoy many other benefits.
AMBS
Australian Museum Business Services - Ecological, archaeological and heritage consulting.
Museum as a Venue
We have many unique venues ideal for dinner, cocktails, weddings and conferences.
4 comments
sfh
2.11 PM, 25 November 2009
I know I'm showing my age but I miss the skeleton gallery of 40 years ago, where there were so many skeletons of so many sizes you could see all the different primates and prosimians, or snakes and lizards and so on - so many you could gaze for hours.
Ondine Evans
11.08 AM, 20 August 2009
We've removed the 'opens' and 'closes' dates from all of our permanent exhibitions, as we realised this was causing some confusion! But, it is interesting to note that the Skeletons exhibition - being the oldest still open - did actually open in 1931.
pmthibault
6.07 PM, 14 July 2009
Hi, what an amazing web site, where people can find out everything they need before, during and after their visit ... please check out your cms, it seems there is an error on the date of this current exhibition "28 May 1931"
Report misuse