The Pokemon Fossil Museum exhibition is running at the Mikasa City Museum in Mikasa, Hokkaido, featuring real fossil specimens and Pokemon characters. (Hiraku Toda)

Photo/Illutration A skeleton of Tyrantrum and Excavation Pikachu at the Mikasa City Museum in Mikasa, Hokkaido, on July 2 (Hiraku Toda)

MIKASA, Hokkaido--Characters from the Pokemon video game series are appearing alongside real fossils at a special exhibition here to better explain life in prehistoric times.

Titled the Pokemon Fossil Museum, the event is jointly organized by the Mikasa City Museum and the National Museum of Nature and Science with the support of The Pokemon Co.

The displays at the Mikasa museum include large models of ammonite-like Omanyte, tyrannosaurus-esque Tyrantrum and other fossil Pokemon, in addition to skeletal specimens of primeval creatures.

In a mixture of science and fiction, a number of Pokemon appear next to the fossil of the creature the “monsters” were modeled after, along with explanatory panels.

This helps visitors understand that a wide variety of creatures lived in prehistoric times, very much like in the Pokemon world.

The first Pokemon game was released for the Game Boy handheld console in 1996, spawning many manga and anime adaptations and character goods and winning the hearts of many generations around the world.

The exhibition is the brainchild of Daisuke Aiba, 31, senior researcher at the Mikasa museum who has been a Pokemon fan since childhood.

He was inspired by fossil Pokemon, which can be restored from fossils using a special machine in the game series.

“The starting point came when I thought I could show children how interesting paleontology can be by using them (Pokemon) as a gateway,” Aiba said.

He sent an email and a project proposal to The Pokemon Co. in 2019. The initial opening of the event was delayed for two years because of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Also in 2019, the national museum set up the Innovation Center for Nature and Science Museums to organize large-scale exhibitions around the country in collaboration with local museums.

The Pokemon event is the first collaborative project.

“Archaeopteryx, which had teeth and a tail, is said to represent a transitional stage between dinosaurs and birds, but Archen, an ancient Pokemon bird, captures these important characteristics well,” Aiba said.

He noted that Archaeopteryx had been colorfully illustrated in many renditions, but the latest research proved it was entirely black.

“I hope visitors compare their similarities and differences and experience the basics of science that involve comparing and observing specimens,” he said.

The exhibition runs until Sept. 20. Online reservations are required at (https://www.city.mikasa.hokkaido.jp/museum/detail_sp/00010482.html).

Admission is 700 yen ($6.40) for adults and 400 yen for elementary and junior high school students.

For inquiries, visit the museum’s official website at (https://www.city.mikasa.hokkaido.jp/museum/detail/00005540.html).

The event will travel to the Shimane Nature Museum of Mt. Sanbe in Oda, Shimane Prefecture, the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo and the Toyohashi Museum of Natural History in Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture, from autumn to next year.

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