The Dohrn Foundation is a nonprofit organization, whose mission is to value, to promote and to communicate the results of the scientific researches performed by the Zoological Station Anton Dohrn (SZN), through the management and the structural, functional and exhibit adaptation of the facilities dedicated to the public: the Aquarium and the Darwin-Dohrn Museum in the Villa Comunale in Naples and the Turtle Point, the research and rescue center of sea turtles, which is located in an oasis of sea and greenery, near the Port of Granatello in Portici.

The Aquarium represents an historical and scientific heritage for the city of Naples. It is the first aquarium in Italy and the oldest in the world to have preserved its original architecture, at present supported by cutting-edge technologies to guarantee the well-being of the host species. It was opened to the public by Anton Dohrn in 1874, who wanted to spread knowledge on the sea and its inhabitants.

“…tanks, where fresh sea water circulates continuously which allows even the most delicate and yet indomitable animals to expose themselves to the eye of science” – Anton Dohrn, Naples 1874

An immersion in the Gulf of Naples, discovering the incredible biodiversity that lives in front of the Villa Comunale. The Aquarium, with its historical value and its 20 tanks organized by habitats, represents a unique experience to discover the ecosystems of the Mediterranean Sea including some tropical environment. Dohrn's dream has never stopped, the scientific and cultural atmosphere of his Zoological Station, currently National Institute of Marine Biology, Ecology and Biotechnology, considered among the best 20 Research Institutes in the world, has come down to us and allows us to look open-eyed at the life and mysteries of submerged world.

The Darwin-Dohrn Museum (DaDoM) has given new life to the “Casina del Boschetto” in the Villa Comunale through a recent renovation. The DaDoM reveals the world of scientific research to Neapolitans and to the visitors of the city. The museum itinerary illustrates the main concepts that allow us understand the evolution of biodiversity, from the origin of life to the present day, and the functioning of marine ecosystems, celebrating two giants of science and their close relationship, born to confirm the theory of evolution: Anton Dohrn and Charles Darwin.

“I fully believe that you have thus done a great service to science” – Charles Darwin's reply to Anton Dohrn informing him of his intention to found the Zoological Station in Naples, 1872

Dohrn founded the Zoological Station exactly to "demonstrate the truthfulness of Darwin's theory on evolution" through the study of marine life. The DaDoM was born on these assumptions, a journey into the oceans through which visitors take a journey through time to discover how the sea “works” and how organisms have adapted to all marine environments.

The Turtle Point is the result of an exceptional urban redevelopment of the Ex-municipal slaughterhouse of thecity of Portici, which has transformed a place of death into a place of life, recovery and survival. The center isspread over more than 600 m2 covered and 7000 m2 open-air and it is equipped with advanced laboratories for environmental and biological analyses, an equipped clinic with surgical and X-Ray area, an educational exhibit, amultimedia area, as well as spaces dedicated to the care and rehabilitation of sea turtles damaged by human activities that impact on marine and coastal environments.

The spaces dedicated to the rehabilitation of the turtles are open to the public. The scientific staff will tell the stories of all the specimens hospitalized, their clinical condition and their curiosities, investigating the topics treated in the multimedia area, provided of available digital screens for the visitors. Life-size models of large marine vertebrates and explanatory panels on the descriptors of the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (2008/56/CE) integrate the visit experience.