EDINBURGH.- An immersive exhibition of giant prehistoric animals opened at the National Museum of Scotland this weekend. Giants (31 January – 14 September 2026) showcases the enormous but often overlooked creatures that roamed the Earth after the extinction of the dinosaurs.

This is the Scottish debut of the spectacular touring exhibition developed by the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences and toured by Nomad Exhibitions.

Giants invites visitors on a journey through time, from 66 million years ago to the present day. The exhibition features life-sized 3D models, fossils and nearly complete skeletons including Paraceratherium species , the largest land mammal ever known to have walked the Earth, Otodus megalodon, the mightiest shark of all time, and the terrific Titanoboa cerrejonensis, the world’s longest ever snake.

Immersive displays transport audiences into the natural habitats of these colossal beings, providing context to their existence and eventual extinction. Interactives also invite visitors to step into the shoes of palaeontologists and biologists, engaging with the scientific processes behind fossil discovery and reconstruction.

New giants have since emerged, such as elephants, rhinoceroses and whales, but they too are now under threat of extinction. Giants closes with a poignant reminder of nature’s fragility and the urgent need to protect these animals for future generations.

Dr Sarah Stewart, Assistant Curator Paleobiology at National Museums Scotland, said: “I am delighted that visitors will have the opportunity to experience the spectacular Giants exhibition from this weekend. Popular attention on prehistoric life tends to focus either on dinosaurs or on our own earliest human ancestors, which leaves a relatively neglected gap of around 60 million years of natural history.

The exhibition is a striking invitation to us all to think about that period, to see how nature adapts over time, and also to reflect on the ways in which current human activity is denying that time to today’s endangered giants.”