The University of Nottingham and Nottingham City Council have welcomed the Nottingham Confucius Institute as a partner on the world-exclusive Dinosaurs of China exhibition.

Along with a donation for the Heritage Lottery Fund and funds raised through Nottingham Lakeside Arts’ crowd-funding campaign, The Nottingham Confucius Institute’s contribution will enable the University of Nottingham’s Lakeside Arts to:

• Commission a unique animatronic puppet feathered dinosaur (a baby Alxasaurus) that will have permanent home at the Nottingham Lakeside Arts and will be used to teach children about dinosaurs both during and after the exhibition
• Create a permanent ‘Dino-Dig’ in Highfields Park, with dinosaur bones buried near the existing playpark that children will be able to excavate and experiencing what it’s like to be on an archaeological dig and feel the excitement when they discover dinosaur bones for the first time
• Help children create their own dinosaurs on iPads, projecting them onto the wall at Lakeside as part of the exhibition.

Dinosaurs of China is a collaboration between Nottingham City Council and the University of Nottingham, who have worked closely with the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing and the Long Hao Institute of Geology and Paleontology Inner Mongolia. The Nottingham Confucius Institute’s involvement in the project further enhances the cross cultural collaboration, fuelled by the University’s strong connections in China, which have proven vital to bringing the prestigious world-class exhibition to Nottingham.

The exhibition takes place from 1^st July to 29^th October 2017 over two sites – Wollaton Hall in Nottingham and University of Nottingham’s public art centre, Lakeside Arts.

Tickets for Wollaton Hall are now on sale, priced £7.70 for an adult and £5.50 for a child. There is a family ticket (2 adults and 2 children) for £22.00. Children under five go free and the event welcomes school parties at a reduced price. Entry to Lakeside is free of charge.

For more information about the exhibition, visit www.dinosaursofchina.co.uk.