 LOCATION:
Barchman Wuytierslaan 224, Postbus 1075
, NL-3800 BB Amersfoort, Netherlands
Phone: +31-33-4227 100
Fax: 4227 101
URL: http://www.dierenparkamersfoort.nl
 KEY WORDS:
Ancient City, Aristotle, Landscape Immersion, Reversed Landscape Immersion, Sacred Animals, Walk Through Aviary
 ANIMALS:
| Family: | Species: | Common Name: | Capacity: |
| Threskiornis aethiopica | Sacred Ibis | 15 |
| Threskiornithidae | Geronticus eremita | Hermit Ibis | 25 |
 DESCRIPTION:
In Ancient City, Amersfoort Zoo wants to tell the story of the relationships between men and animals in the pre-christian civilisations of the Midlle East and the Mediterranean Area. Sacred animals, domesticated animals and animals that played a role in legends are to be met in an ambiance of temples, palaces and creepy alley's. The guest enters the ibis area through the zigurat and leaves it when entering King Darius' Palace making a double door system unnecessary and avoiding the impression of an aviary.
 SIZE:
The section of Ancient City dedicated to the two ibis species is 1.100 m2. The total city complex is 15.000 m2 Space allocation in square meters:
| use | indoors | outdoors | total exhibit |
| accessible | total | accessible | total |
| animals | | | 1,100 | 1,100 | 1,100 |
| visitors | | | 250 | 250 | |
| others | | | | | |
| total | | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,100 |
 COSTS:
including -1 % for design.
not available
 OPENING DATE:
May 1999
 DESIGN:
Beginning: May 1997
- Design: Dierenpark Amersfoort Zoo
 CONSTRUCTION:
Beginning: October 1998
 LOCAL CONDITIONS:
 | | This is a climatic diagram for the closest weather station.
7 m altitude
9.0 °C mean annual temperature
800 mm mean annual precipitation |
 PLANTS:
Honey suckle was used to cover wire messing. Several oaks and birch trees were on the grounds and survived. The plant list specifies the Latin names of the plants used for this exhibit.
 FEATURES DEDICATED TO ANIMALS:
The nesting inlets for the hermit ibis are situated in the city walls. The sacred ibis nest in baskets in the oak tree's.
 FEATURES DEDICATED TO KEEPERS:
 FEATURES DEDICATED TO VISITORS:
Various educational displays tell the story about the role ibisses played in ancient civilisations. Two little tumbledown gates in the city walls give acces to a creepy adventurous route among the lions. Reversed landscape immersion effects are applied. Cultural settings, even more so than natural presentations, are aptly suited to the use of landscape immersion effects to blur the barriers of animal presentations. To avoid the impression of being in an aviary, we used the existing oak trees as the carrying construction for the netting.
 INTERPRETATION:
Various sculptures and bas reliefs illustrate the role animals played in ancient civilisations.
 MANAGEMENT:
 RESEARCH:
Research has been done on materials and building techniques applied in ancient times.
 CONSERVATION:
 LOCAL RESOURCES:
|
 |
| 59K | 72K |
| Overview |
| ©Dierenpark Amersfort, 1999 |
 |
| 39K | 39K |
| Site Plan |
| ©Dierenpark Amersfoort Zoo, 2000 |
 |
| 29K | 34K |
| Hermit Ibis (1) |
| ©Dierenpark Amersfoort, 1999 |
 |
| 46K | 54K |
| Aviary overview (3) |
| ©Monika Fiby, 2000 |
 |
| 51K | 59K |
| Nest (5) |
| ©Monika Fiby, 2000 |
 |
| 69K | 86K |
| View from upper entrance (6) |
| ©Hans Fiby, 2000 |
 |
| 59K | 72K |
| Pond and Temple of Aristotle (7) |
| ©Hans Fiby, 2000 |
|
