Elbauenpark Magdeburg: “Gigantic Dinosaur Worlds”

(eap) Since this spring and continuing into autumn, Elbauenpark in Magdeburg, Germany, has been presenting the temporary experience exhibition “Gigantic Dinosaur Worlds”, which aims to transport visitors of all ages back to the era of the prehistoric giants. Featuring numerous life-sized dinosaur models, interactive activities and educational stations, the exhibition extends across several areas of Elbauenpark, which was created on the site of a former military area for the 1999 Federal Garden Show.

© Foto: Franz-Josef Dickmann, Dinosaurier-Park International In a specially staged area on the Kleiner Cracauer Anger in the western part of Elbauenpark, the “Dino-Aue” features 35 dinosaur figures: models of herbivores and carnivores as well as the “Big Five”, the five largest known predatory dinosaurs from Europe. Six further dinosaur models can be found inside the Jahrtausendturm (Engl.: “Millenium Tower”) – also built on the Kleiner Cracauer Anger – where the existing exhibition on several thousand years of scientific and technological history has thus been expanded to include a focus on palaeontology.

Educational stations and hands-on activities complement the dinosaur world, which was realised in cooperation with the specialists from Dinosaurier-Park International, based in Münchehagen, Germany. Younger visitors in particular can, for example, take part in a treasure hunt in the sandpit and discover small fossils and shark teeth. Changing hands-on activities include painting dinosaur figures or working on excavation blocks. Guided group tours are also offered on selected dates and are free of charge during the summer holidays in the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt.

© Foto: Andreas Lander Another highlight of the temporary experience exhibition is the “Dino Cinema”: every Wednesday and Friday evening, the Dino-Aue is transformed into an open-air cinema, with dinosaur films for family audiences shown among the prehistoric giants. A tent is available in unsettled weather. The themed world is rounded off by culinary specialities such as a “Bronto Hot Dog”, a “T-Rex Tooth” or a “Choco Raptor Cup”. Katja Kraski-Küster, Head of the Jahrtausendturm, offers an interim assessment: “The consistently high level of interest shows just how successful the exhibition is.”

At the same time, the project serves as an exemplary model for the successful reuse of a former garden show site, which could also be implemented at other event venues and parks. Franz-Josef Dickmann, Managing Director of Dinopark International, explains: “They are always fantastic projects when you have the opportunity to realise a prehistoric exhibition concept on such a beautiful former Federal Garden Show site as the Elbauen. What makes this project particularly special is that we have also exhibited our prehistoric animals inside the Jahrtausendturm and were able, among other things, to complete the existing mammoth excavation site with a life-sized mammoth reconstruction.”

© Foto: Franz-Josef Dickmann, Dinosaurier-Park International The “Gigantic Dinosaur Worlds” at Elbauenpark and the Jahrtausendturm can be experienced until 31 October 2026. ■