China Ancient Animal Museum (Baoding Natural History Museum)

Explore the China Ancient Animal Museum (Baoding Natural History Museum) Located in Baoding City, Hebei Province, the **China Ancient Animal Museum (Baoding Natural History Museum)** is a national-level natural science museum specializing in paleontology. It systematically popularizes knowledge of paleontology, paleoecology, paleoanthropology, and evolutionary theory through fossils of ancient organisms. The museum is a collaborative project between the Baoding municipal government and the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and is an important initiative for the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. 🏛️ Museum Overview The museum covers a total construction area of about 73,000 square meters and occupies approximately 120 acres, making it one of the largest natural history museums in Asia. Its architectural design is unique: the above-ground structure consists of seven city walls, symbolizing layered fortifications, while the surrounding North China Plain represents endless green fields. The rectangular exhibition halls on top are interlaced, representing the intense tectonic plate movements of the ancient Earth. The overall design reflects both the geographical features of the North China Plain and modern ecological concepts. The museum’s exhibition theme is "Nature · Life · Humans," with "Evolution" as the main thread. Through a rich collection of exhibits, it tells the story of natural history and conveys the view that "humans and nature are a community of life." About 6,000 exhibits are displayed, mainly from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, including many world-class treasures. 🦕 Must-See Treasures The museum’s collection is extensive, and the following exhibits are not to be missed: · **Skeleton of Sinraptor**: The world’s only skeleton specimen of Sinraptor. · **Miracle Xiushan Fish**: The earliest known fossil of jawed fish. · **Tianshan Hami Pterosaur Egg**: One of the world’s very few three-dimensionally preserved pterosaur egg fossils. · **Hechuan Mamenchisaurus**: One of China’s most famous sauropod dinosaurs. · **Equus Skull of E. eisenmannae**: The fossil skull of the horse species with the longest face and largest individual in the world.