A prehistoric elephant built entirely from LEGO bricks now holds an official Guinness World Records title at Abu Dhabi’s Natural History Museum. The model has been recognised as the Largest LEGO Brick Model of a Prehistoric Mammal.
The Record-Breaking Build
The model recreates Stegotetrabelodon emiratus, a four-tusked elephant that once lived in what is now Abu Dhabi. It uses 748,000 bricks and stands 3.489 metres tall, 5.626 metres long and 2.173 metres wide, which is above the dimensions Guinness required.
It took 585 hours to complete, with 17,000 visitors adding bricks as part of LEGO SHOWS Natural Brickstory, a world-first, limited-time exhibition at the museum.
The Elephant Behind The Model
Stegotetrabelodon emiratus roamed the region around 7 to 8 million years ago, during the Late Miocene epoch. Its story is closely tied to a find made in November 2002, when Dr Mark Beech discovered a fossilised upper tusk near Ruwais, in Al Dhafra, during a survey. Measuring 2.54 metres from base to tip, it was identified as the largest Miocene fossil ever found on the Arabian Peninsula.
Other fossils from the same species sit on permanent display at the museum. They include the leg bones of a large adult from Umm al-Ishtan and the partial skeleton of a sub-adult excavated at Shuwaihat. Together, these finds offer a window into the evolution of elephants and the wildlife that once lived across the region.
Built By Visitors
What makes this record a little different is who built it. The model grew through the exhibition’s community build, which invited visitors to add bricks themselves and connect with Abu Dhabi’s natural heritage in a hands-on way. LEGO describes its system as one that lets people build, unbuild and rebuild ideas, and here that approach turned a shared idea into a world record.
Also Read: Abu Dhabi Honours 75 Senior Emirati Women After They Walked 9 Million Steps
Visit Before It Closes
The museum opened in the Saadiyat Cultural District in November 2025. Also, described as the largest institution of its kind in the Middle East. So, the LEGO elephant makes a fun excuse to see the permanent galleries too.
LEGO SHOWS Natural Brickstory is open daily from 10am to 6.30pm on weekdays, with hours extended to 8.30pm at weekends. It runs only until 8 November 2026, which leaves just a few days to catch it. Tickets and details are available at nhmad.ae.
The museum celebrates its first anniversary on 22 November 2026, and more experiences and celebrations are yet to arrive.
Cover Image Courtesy: Supplied
FAQs
What record did the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi break?
The museum earned a Guinness World Records title for the Largest LEGO Brick Model of a Prehistoric Mammal. The model recreates Stegotetrabelodon emiratus and was built as part of LEGO SHOWS Natural Brickstory.
What was Stegotetrabelodon emiratus?
It was a four-tusked elephant that lived in the Abu Dhabi region around 7 to 8 million years ago, in the Late Miocene epoch. In November 2002, Dr Mark Beech found a 2.54-metre fossilised upper tusk near Ruwais in Al Dhafra, the largest Miocene fossil ever discovered on the Arabian Peninsula.
