Description
The Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali in Turin holds the University's natural history collections, assembled in the 18th and 19th centuries, in the monumental former Ospedale San Giovanni Battista on Via Giolitti, in the historic center.
Its sections range from zoology to entomology, from botany to minerals, geology and fossils. The zoological collections are the richest, with a bird collection of at least 25,000 specimens and those of amphibians and reptiles, including some from Latin America and Madagascar.
In August 2013 an exploding fire-extinguisher cylinder damaged two floors: between repairs and delays the museum stayed closed for about ten years, and it reopened to visitors on January 12, 2024.
On the second floor there is also a specialized library open to the public, with about 12,000 volumes and a collection of about 6,000 old texts.
Its sections range from zoology to entomology, from botany to minerals, geology and fossils. The zoological collections are the richest, with a bird collection of at least 25,000 specimens and those of amphibians and reptiles, including some from Latin America and Madagascar.
In August 2013 an exploding fire-extinguisher cylinder damaged two floors: between repairs and delays the museum stayed closed for about ten years, and it reopened to visitors on January 12, 2024.
On the second floor there is also a specialized library open to the public, with about 12,000 volumes and a collection of about 6,000 old texts.