Oxford Museum of Natural History announce dinosaur exhibits

Timed to coincide with the completion of the museum’s largest redisplay project in its 165-year history, the new displays will open to the public on Monday, July 20.

They feature three long-lost creatures from Oxfordshire, including the world’s first named dinosaur, Megalosaurus.

Dr Gavin Svenson, director of the Museum of Natural History, said: “‘Life, as we know it’ has been a long-term effort to rethink how we present the natural world to our visitors, and it is a pleasure to see that vision now fully realised.

“The new displays bring together thousands of specimens to tell some of the most important stories in science, from the history of life on Earth to the extraordinary diversity of the natural world today.

“We hope they will inspire curiosity, encourage discovery and help visitors of all ages see their place within the wider story of our planet.”

The Megalosaurus was discovered in Stonesfield in the late 18th century and was named in 1824 after analysis by Oxford professor William Buckland.

Visitors will be able to view its fossil remains, including the famous lower jawbone, as part of the museum’s new prehistoric ecosystem displays, supported by Biffa Award.

The final phase of the ‘Life, as we know it’ project also features Eustreptospondylus, a predatory dinosaur unearthed in Summertown in 1870.

This specimen will be displayed for the first time as a fully articulated skeleton, developed through collaboration with the University of Chicago using a mix of fossil material, digital modelling, and 3D printing.

A third dinosaur, Cumnoria, discovered in Cumnor in 1879, will also feature in the fossilisation showcase.

In total, the project includes 48 new displays within 24 modern cases, covering themes such as biodiversity, ecosystems, and evolution.

Interactive elements include touchable mineral specimens and ‘Prehistoric Diver,’ a digital experience that lets visitors explore ancient ocean ecosystems aboard a virtual submarine.

Rachel Maidment, grants manager at Biffa Award, said: “We are delighted to have supported the final phase of the Museum of Natural History’s ‘Life, as we know it’ redisplay project through the Landfill Communities Fund.

“This ambitious programme will help visitors of all ages explore the story of life on Earth, while improving access to nationally significant collections and creating lasting benefits for communities.

“Biffa Award is proud to fund projects that build communities and transform lives, and this remarkable new display is a fitting example of that mission in action.”

The museum, which welcomed more than 877,000 visitors last year, is housed in a neo-Gothic building and remains free to enter.