The massive skeletons of two whales in Dublin’s “Dead Zoo” are being moved around for the first time in decades.
The skeletons, suspended from the ceiling of the National Museum of Ireland, need to be dismantled as part of a €15 million upgrade and renovation plan.
The facility is upgrading the roof, modernising the centre and improving accessibility.
The two large whale skeletons have been a big tourist attraction at the museum in the capital.
A fin whale 20 metres long was found at Bantry Bay in 1862 and was the first of the gigantic aquatic mammals discovered.
A juvenile humpback was subsequently found stranded at Enniscrone, Co Sligo, in 1893 - and both of the historic remains are on display.
Nigel Monaghan, Keeper of Natural History, said: “We are definitely facing a unique challenge, with the dismantling of our whale skeletons. Only a handful of people have done this in other parts of Europe over the past decade. There are experts who we are going to be using, who have that experience.”
He told RTE News: “It will involve taking all of the bones off the suspended metal frames that hold the skeletons together. They’ve been up there for well over a century, so there’s nobody to ask ‘how exactly did you do it?”
