Petrified Wood Museum

Located on Mittraphap – Nong Pling Road, Ban Krok Duean Ha, Mu 7, Tambon Suranari, Amphoe Mueang, it is the first museum of its kind in Thailand and Southeast Asia which has the most diverse and perfect showcase of fossils presenting with multimedia technology. The 32-acre museum comprises the followings:

- Petrified Wood Museum which exhibits gigantic ancient plants which have been aged for 800,000 years – 720 million years old as well as exhibition on ancient beliefs and folk wisdom about the petrified wood. Visitors are allowed to touch some real petrified wood.

- Ancient Elephant Museum which takes visitors through the tunnel that brings ones back to the ancient time during tthe Neolithic around 3,000 years up to 10 million years, the age of the 4- ivory elephants. Visitors can learn the ancient world from VDO presentation on a translucent screen. The skeleton and model of the 4-ivory elephant indigenous to Nakhon Ratchasima and other fossils are on exhibit there.

- Dinosaur Museum which showcases the moving multimedia presentation of fighting dinosaurs on the 360-degree wall screen as well as dinosaur fossils which were excavated in Nakhon Ratchasima such as Iguanodon, Siammotyrannus, etc.

There are also exhibitions on other geological phenomenon of the Northeastern region, the development of natural resources, the evolution of volcano, the impact of the comet that hit the planet which led to the extinction of dinosaurs and ancient elephants.

To get there, take highway 304 (Nakhon Ratchasima – Pak Thong Chai) for 19 kilometres. Turn right at KM 121 and drive another two kilometers, then turn left into Mittraphap – Nong Pling Road for one kilometre.
Remark – The museum is not yet officially open but if interested, the Research Center have staff on duty and free copy of documents every day from 8.30 – 16.30. For more information, call 0 4425 4000 ext 1202.