Oceanographic Museum – Monaco, Monaco - Atlas Obscura

Oceanographic Museum

Museum celebrating the ocean, with the largest wunderkammer dedicated to sea exploration. 

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The Musée Océanographique (Oceanographic Museum) of Monaco is one of the largest scientific institutions dedicated to the study of the ocean. In its aquariums are around 6,000 species of sea creatures, and it also holds an incredible array of specimens collected during 20th century exploration. 

In 2011, the museum commissioned artist Mark Dion to create a new arrangement of the collection in the tradition of a cabinet of curiosity. Drawing from the archives, Dion resurrected many forgotten pieces of the vast collection founded by Prince Albert the 1st, thematically arranged in a 10-foot-high display. Between the polar bear, the antique diving suit, and the giant corals, Mark Dion’s marine wunderkammer is spectacular  in size and variety, a breathtaking display that will arouse your thirst for science.

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July 25, 2013

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