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Top 10 Amazing Facts about Museum of Natural History Basel

Museum of Natural History Basel is a natural museum in Basel, Switzerland that houses wide-ranging collections focused on the field of zoology, entomology, mineralogy, anthropology, and paleontology.

The museum was established in 1849 and it has remained in the same location and retained its traditional name. Its collection is comprised of almost eight million objects that are related to scientific studies and research.

1. The Mummy of Anna Catharina Bischoff is Preserved at the Museum

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Museum of Natural History Basel is where the mummy Anna Catharina Bischoff is preserved and examined.  She gained popularity in 1975 when her mummified corpse was found in a shaft at the Barfüsser Church in Basel in Switzerland.

Anna Catharina Bischoff was born 23 March 1719 in Strasbourg. She was the wife of the pastor Lucas Gertler and was buried on 30 August 1787 in Basel after her death.

Since 2015, the mummy has been preserved and investigated using modern methods at the Natural History Museum of Basel.

2. Theo Pipe Smoker’s Skeleton is Preserved at the Museum

Theo the Pipe Smoker is the fictitious name of a man whose skeleton was found in 1984 in a former potter’s field near the Theodorskirche in Kleinbasel. 

His skeleton was discovered during a routine excavation at a schoolhouse in 1984. The skeleton was recovered completely, but the bones of a foot had to remain in the ground, as the wall of the pit could not be removed for static reasons. 

Theo the Pipe Smoker together with the  24 other skeletons were brought to the Natural History Museum of Basel and archived there in the collection.

3. The Museum is Listed as a Heritage Site of National Significance

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Museum of Natural History Basel was registered as a heritage site of national significance in 1995.

The Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance is a register of cultural property in Switzerland, which provides for the Protection of Cultural Property in the event of armed Conflict.

The register contains both mobile and immobile items of cultural property including old towns, quarters, squares, villages, sacral buildings, houses, castles, bridges, monuments, archaeological sites, and collections.

4. The Museum Started as a Natural History Collection in 1821

The Natural History Museum was founded in 1821 as the first step in the new direction of separating art collections from the university libraries.

In 1836, the art collection was made legally independent from the university library with a separate publicly funded art commission to oversee it.

It was established as a museum of Natural History Basel in 1849 and has remained in the same location and retained its traditional name. Its collection is comprised of almost eight million objects that are related to scientific studies and research.

5. Museum of Natural History Basel is due for Re-location

The Museum of Natural History Basel is housed in an old town property that requires major renovation and is currently unable to provide adequate space to accommodate the collections and archive material in one location.

The new Natural History Museum will display the full splendor of its internationally acclaimed collections of butterflies, birds, fossils, minerals, beetles, and much more.

It will have exciting exhibitions and up-to-date educational programs for children, youngsters, and adults, inviting them to engage with a wealth of themes relating to the natural world.

6. The Museum offers Services for Visitors with Visual Impairment

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‘Please touch!’ is written in the areas containing objects that are expressly allowed to be touched. These exhibits give an opportunity for people with visual impairment to experience the Natural History Museum Basel up close.

These areas have been designed for blind and visually impaired people as well as for people with normal sight. The texts are written in an easy-to-read font for people with visual impairment and in Braille for blind people.

The objects are presented in such a way that they can easily be understood by people with visual impairment. They are also easily accessible to people in a wheelchair and to children.

7. The Museum Hosts Children’s Birthday Parties

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Museum of Natural History Basel allows children to come and celebrate their birthdays with their friends at its premises. Parents and relatives are also allowed to accompany their kids to birthday parties.

The museum conducts learning workshops as part of entertainment for the kids. However, the workshops are only held on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Children are also allowed to bring along their favorite snacks to enjoy themselves during the workshop’s breaks. The lighting of birthday cake candles is prohibited due to safety reasons.

8. The Museum offers Rooms for Hire

Natural History Museum Basel offers much more than only natural history exhibitions. The museum has different kinds of rooms for hire, whether for conferencing, workshops, or seminars. 

The seminar and workshop room was redesigned in 2015 and can accommodate a maximum of 50 people. It is equipped with modern infrastructure including cinema settings, a video projector, and a kitchen with a coffee maker.

The aura room is decorated with portraits of the university of Basel’s former professors and has a capacity of 241 seated people. The room is equipped with modern communication equipment, including a video projector, LED screen, and speaker’s podium.

9. Natural History Museum Basel offers Temporary Job Vacancies

Although the museum of natural history has around 50 permanent employees, it also gives job opportunities to other staff on a temporary basis.

They include staff in the various fields of life and earth sciences, in the taxidermy department, the museum’s educational department, accounting, the library, and supervisory posts.

Others work at the cash desk, the museum shop, housekeeping and technical service, the joinery department, museum public relations department, IT department, and secretarial offices.

10. The museum conducts Supplemental Schools Lessons

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Natural History Museum Basel regularly offers supplemental lessons to the students. They use their huge variety of exhibitions as a source of knowledge experiences and encourage authentic learning for all senses.

The workshops and guided tours for schools are offered in German. However, the museum has English audio guides to help in exploring the museum for English speakers.