(Originally published in TOURISM)
In what amounts to a fortuitous development, the latest exhibit at Sydney’s Australian Museum became a hard to resist opportunity for Canada in the Australian Market, according to Allison Brennan, media and communications executive at the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) office in Sydney.
The exhibit is called Dinosaurs Unearthed and provides visitors a chance to see massive Canadian rock slabs (from Alberta’s Dinosaur Provincial Park ) within the walls of the Australian Museum. The exhibit, on display in Australian Museum’s main gallery, is fantastic, she says: “You stand around the edges and watch. Every time they find a bone, the corresponding section on the outline in the background is coloured to indicate which bone is unearthed; it is very interactive.”
Brennan explains how the museum came to the CTC, which right away saw great value in being involved. “We thought it was a great idea; we are offering a family trip for four to Alberta as a major prize, to be drawn at the end of the exhibition.” The museum believes by the time the exhibition closes, about 50,000 people will have visited. "From what I hear from the museum, everyone coming is entering the competition,” Brennan points out.
The Australian Museum has orchestrated a major publicity campaign around the exhibit, with advertising through billboards and newspapers. “There has been great press coverage so far, including lots of interviews with staff from the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, and mentions of Canada every step of the way.
“Australians know certain parts of Canada very well; it was a great way for us to show Australians less well‑known aspects of Canada, as they tend to go more often to British Columbia and Alberta to see the Rocky Mountains. This way they get to discover the Canadian Badlands region; as Dinosaur Provincial Park is, in fact, close to the Rockies, Australians will now know of another exciting area to visit.”
Dinosaurs Unearthed displays the remains of a Centrosaurus (a horned rhinoceros‑like dinosaur weighing 2.7 tons and measuring 6.1 meters). These plant‑eating dinosaurs roamed the earth around 75 million years ago in North America, and are characterized by distinctive facial horns and large neck frills.
“Australian Museum visitors are able to follow the story of these dinosaurs, as well as to familiarize themselves with the process of digging up dinosaur fossil bones. They have the opportunity to touch the newly excavated dinosaur fossil bones, participate in mock fossil digs, meet paleontologists, and view many dinosaur cast skeleton pieces. Dinosaurs Unearthed is supported by lectures, workshops, family craft holiday activities, dinosaur films, torchlight tours, drawing workshops and, potentially, a ‘snore‑asaurus’ family sleepover.
The dinosaur fossil rock beds have been provided to the Australian Museum by the Royal Tyrell Museum which is the only museum in the world licensed to dig in the Dinosaur Provincial Park.
“Dinosaurs Unearthed resonates especially well with Australians, and appeals to families (44‑55% of the museum’s target audience visit the museum as a family group), and judging from previous exhibitions (Chinese Dinosaurs was one of the Australian Museum’s ‘blockbuster’ exhibitions), this exhibition should appeal to a similar audience.”
Dinosaurs Unearthed occupies centre stage at the museum and does not have direct competition from similar exhibitions running concurrently.
Comments