First, from Gunma Prefecture.

The Gunma Prefectural Museum of Natural History boasts an impressive dinosaur collection, with the full-body skeleton of a Camarasaurus being a particularly magnificent specimen of actual fossil. Photo 1 shows an elaborate miniature of its skull (roughly the size of the Favorite's skull series), with the specimen number GMNH101 proudly (or perhaps playfully?) engraved on the base plate. Such miniatures of museum holdings are, in my opinion, the best souvenirs. Currently, the National Museum of Nature and Science sells a "Collection Replica Model Series" made by Kaiyodo, but these are small, gashapon-sized items and somewhat unsatisfying. If there were NHK souvenirs of an Apatosaurus skull the size of a Camarasaurus's or a Triceratops skeleton... I'd spare no expense.

Photo 1

When the Nakazato Village Dinosaur Center (now Kanna Town Dinosaur Center) opened (in 1987), I faced great difficulty reaching it through Golden Week traffic (it took more than a day to get there!), and these (Photos 2, 3) were my spoils. The local people were making various handmade items to sell, as if to say, "Let's revitalize our village!" (There are also photos in Treasure Museum Vol. 2). Photo 2 is a handmade item by some elderly women, and both the item and the women were later featured on TV news. Photo 3 is a too-simple wooden carving, over 35 cm tall—or rather, just a piece of wood hollowed out. While neither may be great as dinosaur merchandise, both certainly bring back memories of that day 20 years ago.

Photo 2

Photo 3

The highly detailed soft vinyl figure (Photo 4) sold since its opening at the UNESCO Village Great Dinosaur Expedition Museum in Tokorozawa, Saitama, which sadly closed two years ago, was made by KOKORO, a company known for its dinosaur robots. The same item was later sold at the National Museum of Nature and Science with a different plate.

Photo 4

In 2002, the mascot character for the "Creatures of the Dinosaur Age" exhibition held at the Chiba Central Museum was Torichiro-kun, shown in Photo 5. Surprisingly, the model for this character was a Tithylodon, a cynodont from the Cretaceous period discovered in Hakamine Village, Ishikawa Prefecture. It's "rare" in many ways.

Photo 5

Finally, let's extend our journey a bit to introduce some uninspired souvenirs from Nagano Prefecture. Chauseruyama Dinosaur Park in Shinonoi is a truly tranquil place with life-sized dinosaur statues scattered across a hillside. One of the few original goods there is Photo 6, a wooden plate with a relief of a dinosaur statue photo pasted on it. While the handmade feel is nice, it doesn't really make for a good decoration.

Photo 6

Photo 7 is a Shikishi art board that I stumbled upon when visiting Tateshina Plateau. It was sold at the shop of the Kashiwagi Museum, a fossil museum with the feel of a "private museum built as a rich man's hobby" (it also had framed ichthyosaurs, etc.). Apparently, it's a work by a local calligrapher. There's a drawing that looks like a spiny Diplodocus from the latest findings, but of course, that must be a coincidence. If you look closely, the elbow is bent backward... I was indignant, thinking, "Can they really sell something like this at a museum?!" but I was so amused by its absurdity and the story it would make that I impulsively bought it for 1500 yen.

Photo 7

Next time, I'll be exploring Tokyo and Kanagawa, focusing on extinction-themed merchandise from the National Museum of Nature and Science.