Museo di Storia Naturale Don Bosco
Natural history museum founded by Don Bosco in 1879 at the Valsalice institute in Turin, with minerals, fossils, zoology, botany and scientific instruments.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The museum was initiated by Don Bosco, who conceived it in 1878 as a scientific resource for the Valsalice school. It opened on 5 July 1879 with a zoological collection donated by the heirs of Canon Gian Battista Giordano. The current display dates from 1967 and was inaugurated on 12 January 1969. Don Giuseppe Brocardo, director until 2000, greatly enlarged the mineral and rock collections.
The collections occupy two floors of the institute’s main building. On the third floor are the physics and chemistry instruments and the mineralogical and petrographic collection, one of the largest in Italy. On the fourth floor botany, zoology, palaeontology, ethnography and anatomy are on display, with a large shell collection and a herbarium of international importance.
Among the most curious specimens are tuatara from New Zealand, Australian animals such as the koala and the platypus, ethnographic objects of the Shuar, dinosaur eggs, ammonites and fossil fish from Monte Bolca. The visit lasts about two hours and can be focused on a theme: general visit, minerals, zoology or fossils.
Highlights
- Mineral and rock collection among the largest in Italy
- Fossils: ammonites, dinosaur eggs and fish from Monte Bolca
- Zoology with tuatara from New Zealand, koala and platypus
- Herbarium and large shell collection
- Scientific instruments for physics and chemistry
- Ethnographic objects of the Shuar
Permanent exhibitions
- Collezioni mineralogiche e strumenti scientifici (terzo piano) – Physics and chemistry instruments and a large collection of minerals and rocks.
- Botanica, zoologia, paleontologia ed etnografia (quarto piano) – Herbarium, shells, stuffed animals, fossils, ethnographic objects and anatomical specimens.
- Founded
- 1879
- Operated by
- Istituto Salesiano Valsalice
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
Free admission with a voluntary donation.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible
- Elevator: no information
- Accessible restroom: no information
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
According to the museum, it is accessible to people with mobility impairments and free of architectural barriers.
Kids & families
| Time needed | approx. 2 hrs |
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Getting there & parking
The museum is in the main building of the Valsalice institute, at Viale Enrico Thovez 37, in Turin.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Visits on appointment days can be booked by calling the school switchboard, +39 011 630 0611, stating the number of participants, or by writing to the curator at museo@liceovalsalice.it. Schools and groups (one or two classes, up to 60 people) visit the museum in the morning on weekdays and must book at least one week in advance. You can choose a theme: general visit, mineral collection, zoological or fossil collection. |
