Visitor Information Centre - Accredited
Museum in Cabonne

Imagine a world ruled by fish! Long earlier dinosaurs roamed the Earth, the strong rivers of the Central West teemed with peculiar ancient fishes armored fishes, fishes with lungs, and some large predators with jaws like crocodiles. Thousands of their fossils were found at Canowindra and present us a unique glimpse into life during the Devonian Period the 'Age of Fishes'. The best of the fossils so far recovered are now on public display at Canowindra, at the Age of Fishes Museum. The Age of Fishes Museum aims to stimulate and thrive a students interest in fossils and broaden their accepting of how fossils tell us about the different kinds of organisms that lived on the earth and how they have replaced one another over geological time. The Friends Of Fossils program was established in 1995 to foster people with an interest in the development of the Museum and the Canowindra fossils to support this world famous project. The Devonian Inland rivers and lakes teemed with fish the invasion of arid land had begun but the majority of life was tranquil underwater. Life looked very diverse and this is the time when our fossils were alive. A pond on the splendid continent of Gondwana finally dries up and thousands of fish perish in a single place only to be covered with silt and buried for millions of years. Dinosaurs roam the earth and our treasures continue buried deep within the ground they walk upon already 200 million years used and waiting. The beginning fresh Homo sapient walk the earth in the Paleolithic Era. The beginning slab now known as the 1956 slab is moved to the Australian museum where it remains underclass for many years. Building of the current museum commenced. The famous 1956 slab returns to its home to be permanently displayed at the Age of Fishes Museum in Canowindra. The addition of the time line to the museum experience is completed. Canowindra continues to showcase this unique Devonian fossil collection one of only Two Devonian fish fossil museums in the World.