Trilobite Treasures opens at Dennos Museum featuring fossils, horseshoe crabs through May

Dennos Museum Center at Northwestern Michigan College opened the "Trilobite Treasures" gallery on January 23, displaying a collection assembled over 35 years that includes actual trilobite specimens and horseshoe crab material on view through May 31, 2026. The show presents fossils spanning roughly 250 to 500 million years, offering a tangible look at Paleozoic marine life in Traverse City.

On its exhibit page Dennos describes the installation this way: "This exhibit presents these fine Paleozoic creatures in a way that tells a story of the prehistoric life in the ancient seas." The museum site also states, "The collection, assembled over 35 years, provides a unique snapshot of life in the ancient seas from 250 to 500 million years ago," placing the material squarely in Cambrian and broader Paleozoic context for visitors.

Dennos lists museum hours as Tuesday through Sunday, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM, with the building closed on Mondays and major holidays. Admission on the museum page is Adults $10, Children 5–17 $5, Children 4 and under FREE; Museum Members, NMC staff and students are admitted free. Upnorthlive notes that general admission is required for access to the gallery.

The exhibit combines specimens with interpretation: Dennos says visitors can "Explore the life and death of these creatures once so plentiful during the Cambrian period that it was called the Age of Trilobites through actual trilobite specimens, charts, posters, artifacts, models, interactive units, and wall texts and provides an excellent look into the ancient world of the Paleozoic seas." The museum materials emphasize interpretive units and wall texts rather than listing individual specimen numbers or loan institutions.

Local arts calendars list "Trilobite Treasures" alongside Dennos' other winter-spring programs; "New Perspectives: Recent Acquisitions from the Dennos Permanent Art Collection" is listed to run Jan. 23 - May 31, "Twelve-By-Twelve" runs Jan. 23 - April 1, and a Doug Cannell event appears in the same schedules at 11:00 AM. Calendar entries show the exhibit as an item at 11:00 AM on community listings for Saturday, Feb. 21 and Monday, Feb. 23, and advise checking the museum web page for hours.

Regional coverage included a TV story by Katrina Bailey with the headline "Millions year old fossils on display at the Dennos Museum at NMC," and published image files listed by WPBN/WGTU with filenames such as "Tribolite Treasures 4.png," "Tribolite Treasures 2.png," "Tribolite Treasures 5.png," and "Tribolite Treasures 1.png." Upnorthlive summarized the gallery, writing, "The gallery opened the 'Trilobite Treasures' exhibit features fossils from around the world on January 23," and added, "The species has no living relatives but is often compared to the horseshoe crab or roly-poly."

Dennos Museum Center identifies itself on its site as a Smithsonian Affiliate and a Certified Autism Center™, and credits support from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment for the Arts. The museum is located at 1701 E. Front St., with GPS listed as 1410 College Drive, Traverse City, MI 49686; the museum phone on the exhibit page is 231.995.1055. The Trilobite Treasures installation remains on view through May 31, 2026, as part of Dennos' current slate of exhibits.