Paleontology

Paleontology is the Science that studies the traces of past life, which are somehow preserved in rocks, the fossils. These traces could be shells, bones, footprints or even eggshells. When studying fossils the time scale is so large that geologists and paleontologists use the Million Years as a unit of temporal measurement.

The Lourinhã Museum has a vast collection of fossils, incorporating a large part of the paleontological heritage of the region in which it is located. The findings found here are extremely relevant as some specimens gave rise to new species for science (holotypes).

The dinosaurs are certainly the examples that have publicized the name Lourinhã beyond borders. The national and international relevance of the finds found in the region, and combined with the popularity of the topic, attract many visitors to the region, as well as students and specialists from all over the world.