With "Extinction·Resilience" as its inaugural exhibition's theme, the Hong Kong Science Museum's new and permanent exhibition gallery, "Palaeontology Gallery", presents the challenges and evolution that life has gone through since the Ediacaran Period 635 million years ago. The exhibition will be open to public from tomorrow (September 15).
Addressing the opening ceremony today (September 14), the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Kevin Yeung, said that the "Extinction·Resilience" exhibition is one of the permanent gallery's renewal projects of the Hong Kong Science Museum. It is hoped that members of the public can learn more about the history and changes in the Earth's life and ecology over the eons, as well as reflect on the imminent challenges brought to the survival of life by recent anthropogenic developments. He added that museums are crucial to the cultural development of Hong Kong. Not only can museums bring knowledge to members of the public, but also attract tourists to visit Hong Kong. The Policy Address last year recommended the building of four new museums. The Government will base its findings on overseas' experiences and Hong Kong's need to review the future direction of museum development.
The exhibition is divided into six zones to introduce five major mass extinction events that occurred in the Earth's long geological history. The exhibition features over 100 sets of precious animal and plant fossils of different periods. Valuable exhibits include a woolly mammoth fossil more than 3 metres tall from the Quaternary ice ages; the most complete Deinonychus fossil to date; 1:1 fossil replicas of prehistoric marine predator fish species Xiphactinus, Megalodon and Dunkleosteus; and fossilised Dryobalanoxylon wood specimens that were formed in Indonesia 2 to 4 million years ago. The exhibition also showcases lifelike robotic dinosaurs and interesting interactive exhibits featuring knowledge on fossil excavation, prehistoric environment and the evolution of life, etc. It holds an open ending with the depiction of an ongoing risk of the sixth mass extinction that calls for human efforts to boost wildlife conservation and environmental protection.
Other officiating guests today included the Chief Business Impact Officer of Chinachem Group, Ms Sylvia Chung; the Director of Vegasoul Capital Management (Asia) Limited, Dr Run Run Wong; the Chairman of the Museum Advisory Committee, Professor Douglas So; Museum Expert Adviser of the Hong Kong Science Museum Professor Chan Lung-sang; the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Mr Vincent Liu; and the Museum Director of the Hong Kong Science Museum, Mr Lawrence Lee.
The exhibition is presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, organised by the Hong Kong Science Museum, and supported by the National Natural History Museum of China, the Nina Park of Chinachem Group and Vegasoul Capital Management (Asia) Limited. The Hong Kong Science Museum is located at 2 Science Museum Road, Tsim Sha Tsui East. For details of the exhibition and its admission fee arrangements, please visit hk.science.museum/en/web/scm/exhibition/pg.html, or call 2732 3232 for enquiries.
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