Complex sentence: The collection's earliest specimens predate the Museu Paulista itself: these nearly 2,000 specimens date back to the 1880s and belonged in Herman von Ihering's personnal collection, which he himself brought to Brazil.
Split into simpler sentences: The collection's earliest specimens predate the Museu Paulista itself. These nearly 2,000 specimens date back to the 1880s and belonged in Herman von Ihering's personnal collection, which he himself brought to Brazil.