thumb|The building rises from the cliffside rock.

thumb|A view of the interior of the museum

thumb|Aerial view of the Rock with the museum

The Oceanographic Museum (), is a museum of marine sciences in Monaco City, Monaco.

This building is part of the Institut océanographique, which is committed to sharing its knowledge of the oceans.

History

The Oceanographic Museum was inaugurated in 1910 by Monaco's modernist reformer Prince Albert I, who invited to the celebrations not just high officials and celebrities but also the world-leading oceanographers of the day to develop the concept of a future Mediterranean Commission dedicated to oceanography, now called Mediterranean Science Commission.

Jacques-Yves Cousteau was director from 1957 to 1988. The Museum celebrated its centenary in March 2010, after extensive renovations.

Overview

The museum is home to exhibitions and collections of various species of sea fauna (starfish, seahorses, turtles, jellyfish, crabs, lobsters, rays, sharks, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, eels, cuttlefish etc.). The museum's holdings also include a great variety of sea related objects, including model ships, sea animal skeletons, tools, weapons etc., as well as a collection of material culture and ritual objects made from, or integrating materials such as pearls, molluscs and nacre.

At the first floor, A Sailor’s Career showcases the work of Prince Albert I. It includes the laboratory from L’Hirondelle, the first of Prince Albert's research yachts. Observations made there led to an understanding of the phenomenon of anaphylaxis, for which Dr Charles Richet received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1913.

Architecture

This monumental example of highly charged Baroque Revival architecture has an impressive façade above the sea, towering over the sheer cliff face to a height of 279 feet (85.04 m). It took eleven years to build, using 100,000 tons of stone from La Turbie.

Oceanographic research vessels inscribed on façade

{| class="wikitable"

!Country

!Vessel

!Image

!Year Launched

!Expedition

!Inscription

|GAZELLE

|-

|

|HMS Investigator'

|TALISMAN

|-

|

|SS Valdivia'

|WASHINGTON

|-

| ()

|SS Vega'

<gallery mode="packed">

File:Aquarium Piranhas.jpg|Aquarium with Piranhas

File:Sea turtle Monaco.jpg|Sea turtle

File:Nautilus Monaco.jpg|Nautilus

File:Monaco Oceanographic Museum 01.jpg|Central room of the top floor

</gallery>

See also

  • List of museums in Monaco

References

  • Guide to visiting the Museum