Museo de la Naturaleza y el Hombre, Natural history museum in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain.
The Museo de la Naturaleza y el Hombre is a natural history museum in the center of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, focused on the nature and heritage of the Canary Islands. It displays fossils, archaeological finds, mummified human remains, and plant and animal specimens from across the archipelago.
The museum was founded to preserve objects and remains left by the Guanche, the original inhabitants of the Canary Islands before Spanish colonization. Over time, the collections grew to include natural history exhibits documenting the geology and wildlife of the islands.
The museum is housed in a former civil hospital from the 19th century, and the building's architecture is still clearly visible throughout the visit. The wide halls and galleries give the displayed objects plenty of room and add a distinctive character to the experience.
The museum sits in the center of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and is easy to reach on foot or by bus from most parts of the city. Visiting all the galleries takes a few hours, so it is worth setting aside enough time to see everything at a comfortable pace.
Some of the Guanche mummies on display were found in a natural position, suggesting complex burial rituals that are not yet fully understood. Their state of preservation is unusually good, making them a rare record of pre-colonial life on the islands.
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