University museums

The Laboratory of mathematical machines (the MMLab), at the University of Modena e Reggio Emilia,contains a collection of geometrical instruments (called ‘mathematical machines’).

The Museum of Astronomy and Geophysics is located in the historic headquarters of the Geophysics Observatory, precisely in the east tower of the Ducal Palace.

The zoological collections include about 3,500 naturalized vertebrates (birds, mammals, fish, reptiles), of which about 100 belong to the vertebrate fauna of the Modenese area; about 1,000 vertebrates preserved in liquid (fish and reptiles in particular), 250 skeletons and anatomical parts of vertebrates, several hundred invertebrates preserved in alcohol or formalin.

The Museum of Paleontology, founded in 1776 at the behest of Duke Francesco III D’Este, was born as an integral part of the Natural History Museum.

The vicissitudes that have accompanied the origin of "Gemma 1786", the Estense Mineralogical and Geological Museum of the Earth Sciences Department, reflect the cultural evolution that, during time, has characterized the city of Modena and its territory.