Masutomi Museum of Geoscience, Geological museum in Kamigyō-ku, Japan
The Masutomi Museum of Geoscience is a geological museum in Kyoto located on the third floor, where mineral specimens and fossil collections are arranged across dedicated exhibition spaces. Visitors encounter displays of rocks, crystals, and preserved remains that tell stories of Earth's natural history.
Kazunosuke Masutomi founded a geology research institute in 1973, which transformed into a public museum in 1991. This shift made a private rock collection accessible to the public after decades of private study and gathering.
The museum carries the name of its founder Kazunosuke Masutomi, reflecting his dedication to geological sciences. Today it serves as a place where visitors can engage directly with Earth science collections and understand the natural world beneath our feet.
The museum is accessible via Exit 2 of Marutamachi Station on the Karasuma Line subway, followed by a seven-minute walk through the neighborhood. The location sits in a residential area where finding the building is straightforward once you exit the station.
The collection includes a substantial ammonite fossil and large amethyst crystals that visitors rarely encounter in other museums. Unusual specimens like itacolumite and elephant tusk fossils reflect the specialized focus built over the founder's lifetime of collecting.
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