Peshelan' — Museum in a mine and mini-zoo «The Lost World»

The most mysterious place in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast. The only underground museum of geology, caving and mining in Russia. This unique museum was opened in 2006. Its main feature is that it is under the ground. The museum is located in a producing gypsum mine. Tourists put on miner clothes, that is, a jacket and a helmet with a torch, and are descended into a producing mine to a depth of 70 meters.

The area of the museum is about 3,000 sq.m, where there are 8 halls. Exhibitions of the halls are various. One of the most interesting one introduce you to a gypsum mine, the elements of mining, and you can also watch here how gypsium is gained. It is also told about the history of mining and commercial development of the local gypsum deposit. In another hall, there are about 300 rock samples. There is also an underground lake with a waterfall and the other attributes of underground life such as stalactites (artificial), paintings of ancient people (the originals have been found in France, Spain, Italy, and Russia). You can also see statues of ancient people themselves at the moment of making a fire. The main characters of exhibition «The Lost World» are giant reptiles (dinosaurs). In a schungite room one can revive their energy and get a rest from the daylight.

By visiting this museum, you will go to the prehistoric era, get acquainted with geological scientific facts; it is the place where modern reality of mining and picturesque imagination are interweaved.