Discover the masterpieces of the Museum of Natural Sciences

Discover the
masterpieces of
the Museum of
Natural Sciences
For children from
6 to 8 years
Entrance
The Whale in the Entrance Lobby
This isn’t a dinosaur. It’s a humpback
whale! Look closely, what does it
NOT have?
a)Ribs
b)
A skull
c)Teeth
Dinosaur Gallery
Bernissart Iguanodons
These dinosaurs were found by
accident in a Belgian coalmine
322m underground! Look at the
iguanodon coming out of the
glass display case on all fours.
How many fingers does it have
on each hand?
a)
b)
c)
3 fingers
4 fingers
5 fingers
2.
Mont-Dieu Meteorite
Meteorites are rocks that come from space and fall to Earth. This
one is a piece of the biggest meteorite found in Europe. How much
does it weigh?
a)435kg
b)206kg
c)124kg
3.
Mosasaur Hall
Hainosaurus bernardi
Hainosaurus bernardi is not a dinosaur but a mosasaur: it’s a giant
lizard that lived in the sea at the same time as T. rex lived on land.
Look at its teeth: what do you think it ate?
a)Rocks
b)Algae
c)Sharks
Gallery of Evolution
Sea Lilies
Sea lilies are not plants. They are animals
with long stalks topped with lots of arms.
Where did they live?
a)
b)
c)
On top of mountains
At the bottom of the sea
In pine forests
4.
Eurohippus messelensis
This little animal is an
ancestor of modern horses.
It lived in the forest and ate
leaves. How many legs did it
have?
a)Two
b)Four
c)Six
250 years of Natural Sciences Hall
Lier Mammoth
This mammoth was discovered in Belgium.
How old was it when it died?
a)
b)
c)
Three and a half months old, it was a baby
Three and a half years old, it was a young animal
Between 30 and 35 years old, it was an adult
5.
Thylacine
Just like kangaroos, the mother thylacine
kept her babies in a pouch on her belly. On
its back the thylacine (or Tasmanian wolf) has
…
a)
b)
c)
big splodges like a giraffe
small spots like a ladybird
stripes like a tiger
Ishango Bone
The ‘Ishango Bone’ is a 10cm long bone covered in notches and
topped with a small piece of quartz. Where was it found?
a)
b)
c)
At Lake Geneva
At Lake Edward
At Lake Titicaca
6.
Gallery of Humankind
The Spy Man
The Spy Man (pronounced ‘Spee’) lived in
Belgium a very long time ago (40,000 years
ago). He had bigger teeth than us modern
humans. What did he eat?
a)
b)
c)
Mammoth meat
No meat, just raw vegetables
No meat, no vegetables, just sweets
Chaleux Stone
This stone slab was decorated more than 12,000 years ago! On one
side there‘s a horse and two mountain goats. On the other side
there‘s a reindeer and …
a)
b)
c)
a bison
an aurochs
a buffalo
7.
Mineral Hall
Moon rock
American astronauts collected this small piece of rock on the Moon.
It’s as big as…
a)
b)
c)
a tennis ball
a golf ball
a marble
8.
9.
Colophon
Translation: Sarah Muir
Layout: Delphine Vandenbranden
© Brussels Museums - 2016
1: c (It has baleen instead of teeth: we can’t see it on this skeleton but baleen is made
of long plates of keratin (the same material that makes up your nails and hair). The
plates are packed tightly together so that small fish and shrimps can’t escape the
mouth.)
2: c (Look the pointy thumb! Before these iguanodons were discovered in Bernissart,
scientists thought that it was a horn that grew on their nose!)
3: a (The whole meteorite would weight more than 800kg, that’s same as a big cow!)
4: c (Hainosaurus bernardi was a carnivore: it ate fish (even sharks!), tortoises, squid
and sometimes other mosasaurs!)
5: b (In the past, there were so many of these lilies that they formed ‘meadows’ on
the seabed.)
6: b (You might think that this fossil has only got three legs, but if you look closely,
you’ll see the left leg is to the right.)
7: c (It was found with another adult, a young mammoth and the remains of a cave
hyena, a horse and a deer.)
8: c (It’s also known as the ‘Tasmanian tiger’: it lived on the Australian island of
Tasmania.)
9: b (Lake Geneva is in Switzerland, Lake Titicaca is in South America.)
10: a (The Spy Man ate cooked vegetables and the meat of the animals he hunted. At
that time there weren’t any sweets, just fruits, berries and nuts)
11: b (The aurochs is the ancestor of the modern cow. It has been extinct for nearly
400 years)
12: c (It really is very small!)
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