The Turin Museum of Natural History (Italian: ''Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali di Torino'' or MRSN) was established in 1978 to house the natural history collections of the

University of Turin The University of Turin (Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Torino'', UNITO) is a public research university in the city of Turin, in the Piedmont region of Italy. It is one of the oldest universities in Europe and continues to play an impo ...

and other collections of natural history, originated from specific research campaigns and donations. It is located at 36 Via Giolitti,

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, in a 17th-century building which used to be the hospital of San Giovanni Battista, build by

Amedeo di Castellamonte Amedeo Cognengo di Castellamonte (1618 – 17 September 1683) was an Italian architect, civil and military engineer. Biography He was born in Castellamonte (in what is now the province of Turin, then in the Duchy of Savoy). His father Carlo beca ...

. The museum has departments (sezioni) of

zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...

entomology Entomology () is the science, scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such ...

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

minerals In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2 ...

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

and

paleontology Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

. It also has a specialist library and an exhibition centre.

People

Naturalists associated with the collections include: *

Franco Andrea Bonelli Franco Andrea Bonelli (10 November 1784 – 18 November 1830) was an Italian ornithologist, entomologist and collector. Life Very little is known about the early life of Bonelli: he was born in Cuneo and was interested from an early age in the ...

Maximilian Spinola Maximilian Spinola ( it, Massimiliano Spinola; July 10, 1780 – November 12, 1857) was an Italian entomologist. Background Spinola was born in Pézenas, Hérault, France. The family of Spinola was of very long standing and had great wealth a ...

Luigi Bellardi Luigi Bellardi (18 May 1818 – 17 September 1889) was an Italian malacologist and entomologist who specialised in Diptera. Bellardi was born in Genoa and died in Turin. His collection is in the Turin Museum of Natural History In 1872, then a Pro ...

* Antonio Garbiglietti * Franco Andreone

External links

Official Site
Natural history museums in Italy Museums in Turin Museums established in 1978 University of Turin {{Italy-museum-stub