Exhibition
Porch
This is the entrance of the Osaka Museum of Natural History.
You will be welcomed by our Nagasuke (finback whale) and Makko (sperm whale).
Panoramas 360 VR
Finback whale "Nagasuke"
This sample is made from a carcass that was washed ashore on April 8, 1990, and it took us 7 years to turn it into a skeletal preparations. Although finback whales live in ocean all over the world, there have only been a few cases where their carcasses were washed ashore since they mostly swim off coast. The town of Osaka is covered with man-made artifacts. However, it seems like this finback whale is telling us that the sea of Osaka is also connected to the great nature where whales swim. This skeleton is 19 meters long, and is the largest specimen in whales that have been collected and exhibited in the waters near Japan.
The name "Nagasuke" was chosen from various names suggested by the museum visitors.
Sperm whale "Makko"
This skeletal preparation was a carcass that was washed ashore at the Sakaisenboku port on May 22, 2010. Although the bones of sperm whales have been discovered from under the grounds in Osaka city, this sperm whale carcass was the first case in recent years to be washed into the Osaka bay. Makko is 9.1 meters long, and is said to have weighed about 10 tons when alive. Many beaks of various squids such as giant squid were found in its digestive tract.
The name "Makko" was chosen from various names suggested by the museum visitors.