Western Australian Museum
The largest and most comprehensive museum in Western Australia features a close look at the Aboriginal heritage, a history of European settlement in WA and a wide range of bird, butterfly, marine, mammal and dinosaur galleries.
Just north of the railway line in central Perth lies the Perth Cultural Centre, featuring the Western Australian Museum, Art Gallery of Western Australia and State Library.
Behind the WA Museum is the old Perth Gaol, built between 1854 and 1856 for colonial prisoners and closed as a gaol in 1888 when prisoners were transferred to Fremantle Prison. The building was altered subsequently but attempts have been made to alter the building back to something close to its original form.
The Historic Grapevine was thought to be have been planted around 1850, which would make it one of the oldest in Australia.
Meteorites have often been found in Western Australia. The iron meteorite was found in the Nullarbor Plain about 630km east of Kalgoorlie and weighs around 800kg.
The Megamouth shark is a rare species. First discovered in 1876 around 50 of the megamouth sharks have been sighted and even fewer caught. The megamouth in the grounds of the WA Museum was found washed ashore at Mandurah.
Link: Western Australia Museum, Perth
