King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands has opened the “Of Invaluable Value – 200 Years of Naturalis” exhibit at the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden.
The King attended the opening on Tuesday to mark 200 years since the opening of the centre.
There will be 25 pieces on display to shed a light on the history of Naturalis. These pieces are not usually accessible to the public.
According to the Naturalis Biodiversity Center, “Naturalis is the national research institute for biodiversity. Our scientists dedicate themselves to describing, understanding and preserving biodiversity without interruption.”
The event was due to have several guests and press present for the inauguration. However, due to the ongoing pandemic, many invites had to be withdrawn and the number of press allowed in had to be limited. All those in attendance followed Dutch health guidelines regarding the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden was initially opened in 1820 by King Willem I as the National Museum of Natural History. At first, it was just the King’s personal collection, but it has since grown into an extensive collection that became one of the leading natural history collections in the world.
The exhibit is open from today, and you can learn more about the Naturalis Biodiversity Center here.
