DoloMythos: a special and exciting exhibitions

Dolomythos special exhibition 2026

We know relatively little about how flora evolved over millions of years. What did the very first plant look like? When did the first conifers and flowering plants appear?

In the world’s only prehistoric botanical garden at Dolomythos in Innichen, a comprehensive special exhibition traces the fascinating journey of plant evolution. It begins with the first small primordial plant, Cooksonia, which ventured from water onto land more than 400 million years ago paving the way for the first animals to do the same.

Hardly any other region in the world offers such rich insight into the evolution of plant life as the Dolomites. Across an immense timespan of over 200 million years, a wide variety of evolutionary processes can be traced in the rock layers.

For the first time, Michael Wachtler has brought together the most important milestones in global plant evolution and presents them as if visitors were strolling through a modern botanical garden. Detailed displays illustrate how gradual and diverse this development has been—ultimately giving rise to the natural world we enjoy today.

Flora Eterna – Magic of plants

Many plants exist almost completely unchanged for more than 300 million years. They are still widely used by people today: for medicinal purposes or in the kitchen. The Dolomites in particular are considered a paradise for the exploration and discovery of ancienta floras.

(With the film: Healing Nature)