In day September 2, 2018, the National Museum, located in Quinta da Boa Vista, in Rio de Janeiro, was consumed by flames in a great fire. The museum, which was created on June 6, 1818 by D. João VI, had a collection of 20 million priceless items.
Read too: History of the National Museum
→ National Museum Collection
The National Museum, which had turned 200 years old in 2018, had 20 million items in its collection. According to data available on the Museum's website, these items included:
Luzia, the oldest human fossil found in Brazil: this female skull was dated more than 11,000 years ago and stood out as the oldest fossil in America. The importance of this material lies in the fact that, with its discovery, it was possible to better understand how the occupation of the american continent.
Dinosaurs room at the National Museum. (Photo: Personal collection of Dr. Elysiane de Barros Marinho)
Dinosaur Maxakalisaurus topai, from Minas Gerais: known as Dinoprata, this herbivorous animal of the Titanosaur family was the first large-sized dinosaur mounted for exhibition in our country. All the work, from excavating to assembling the fossil, took ten years. It is worth noting that the museum
it also had a series of fossils from other organisms, such as insects, arachnids, reptiles and plants.
Read more about:dinosaurs
mummified head produced by the Shuar (Jivaro): you Jivaro, peoples of the Ecuadorian Amazon, in mummification, removed the bones of the skull and made the skin shrink, allowing the physiognomy and hair of the individuals to be maintained mummified.
Collection of over five million copies of insects: according to the National Museum, this collection was of inestimable and unequaled value. The National Museum was considered one of the greatest centers of entomological diversity (insect diversity) in all of South America.
Shells, Corals and Butterflies exhibition room. (Photo: Personal collection of Dr. Elysiane de Barros Marinho)
Extensive collection of mammals from our fauna: among the taxidermized (stuffed) species in the museum, we can mention the wild dog, capybara, maned wolf, otter, jaguar, bentinho sloth, three-toed sloth, giant anteater, giant anteater, giant armadillo and bush deer.
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Collection of Greco-Roman art and artifacts by Empress Teresa Cristina (Empress Consort of the Empire of Brazil from 1843-1889);
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collection of Ancient Egypt: this collection included mummies, sarcophagi, funerary stelae, figurines and other artifacts, totaling almost 700 objects obtained thanks to donations and purchases.
Bendego Meteorite: that meteorite, collected in Bahia, it is the largest Brazilian meteorite and is among the largest meteorites in the world. Its weight is 5, 36 tons.
Objects of indigenous culture, Afro-Brazilian culture and Pacific cultures.
The National Museum had exhibits on the richness of indigenous, Afro-Brazilian and Pacific culture. (Photo: Personal collection of Dr. Elysiane de Barros Marinho)
→ Items lost in the National Museum fire
The serious fire at the National Museum started around 7:30 pm on September 2, 2018 (Sunday), after it closed for visitors. the fire took large proportions because of factors such as the large amount of wood on the floor and the amount of flammable material inside the building.
During the fire, some employees, teachers and technicians entered the building in an attempt to save some items. Some specimens of molluscs, for example, were saved by Professor Paulo Buckup and his colleagues.
It is still not possible to identify which items were actually lost in the fire and there is still hope that extremely valuable pieces can be recovered. Some rare and valuable pieces were kept in safes and cupboards and were not on display. This is the case, for example, with Luzia's skull. However, it is not known whether these compartments withstood the fire and the weight of debris from the collapse of the two floors of the building.
Several shells that were on display at the National Museum. (Photo: Personal collection of Dr. Elysiane de Barros Marinho).
Despite not knowing for sure which items were lost, the estimate is that the loss is of 90% of the entire collection, according to the deputy director of the Museum, Cristiana Serejo. Among the items that are part of the 10% preserved, we can mention the Bendego meteorite, which remained intact after the fire. We cannot forget the losses of several researchers, who had their studies interrupted by this tragedy.
*Editorial attribution credit: A.PAES / Shutterstock.com
By Ma. Vanessa Sardinha dos Santos
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
SANTOS, Vanessa Sardinha dos. "What was lost in the fire at the National Museum?"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/curiosidades/o-que-foi-perdido-no-incendio-museu-nacional.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
