- Manthi said once the fossils have been processed, it will be possible for scientists from Kenya and overseas to assess them.
- He said the lab will help advance their research goals as a department and a museum.
The National Museums of Kenya on Tuesday unveiled the Acid Fossil Preparation Lab, a first of its kind in the region.
The head of the department of Earth Sciences Fredrick Manthi said the laboratory is key for research.
“It will largely help the processing of fossils that are preserved in some very hard matrix. In some cases we receive or find fossils in the field that are preserved in hard matrix. The lab will help to process them,” he said.
Manthi said once the fossils have been processed, it will be possible for scientists from Kenya and overseas to assess them.
He said the lab will help advance their research goals as a department and a museum.
“This facility is the first of its kind. We do not have this facility in most parts of Africa except South Africa,” he said.
Manthi said the facelift given to the lab cost Sh1 million.
Earth science is the study of ancient biodiversity and cultural remains.
The aim is to enhance understanding the evolutionary history of own species and others.
The museum is famous for its bones, from fossilised skulls of human ancestors to the fully preserved skeleton of Ahmed, the only elephant protected by presidential decree.
More than 70 hominid fossils had been recovered from Koobi Fora site, Turkana county, since researchers started work on the site in 1968.
The remains of Tim, the majestic Amboseli elephant, have also been preserved at the museum.