We place great value both on scientific research and the visitor experience. Research, collection and preservation, communicating knowledge – we believe it is our job to connect the dots between these traditional responsibilities of a museum.
The parts of the museum which visitors experience directly are our exhibitions. Here our goal is to make natural history accessible to all our patrons.
Our permanent collections are exhibited in over 4,000 square metres of display space. We present native and exotic wildlife from different regions of the world in natural-looking dioramas of their habitats. Live animals from the Vivarium are also integrated in the exhibitions. For example, the State Museum of Natural History's "mascot," the giant salamander Andrias, is a living fossil that helps to illustrate the history of our earth. The model of a pterosaur with its ten-metre wingspan was constructed in the museum and seems to soar through the air in the atrium. Rocks, fossils and minerals from the Upper Rhine region provide visitors with a unique view of the geological history of our region.
In addition to the permanent exhibitions, our temporary special exhibitions focus on a wide spectrum of topics.
Our scientists are involved in international research projects around the globe, allowing us to present the latest research findings alongside our permanent and special exhibitions.
The Vivarium is one of the special attractions of the State Museum of Natural History. In aquariums and terrariums that mimic natural habitats, visitors can admire exotic animals ranging from the poison dart frog to the rattle snake, Mediterranean Sea dwellers such as the octopus and the catshark, and a rainbow array of tropical fish.
The museum's education programmes are aimed at all age groups. Our goal is to awaken interest in and facilitate understanding of the interrelationships of the natural world. We have something to offer all of our patrons — from guided tours for school classes or pensioners to children's birthday parties, scientific lectures and events which tie in with our special exhibitions.
The work done by our team of botanists, entomologists, geoscientists and zoologists not only makes important contributions to international research, but also directly effects wildlife protection and nature conservation. These scientists' publications and expert knowledge facilitate the work of nature conservation authorities in Germany and abroad, providing a foundation of data and facts to support political decision-making on ecological and economic issues.
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For over 200 years….
The State Museum of Natural History Karlsruhe emerged from the Margrave and Badenian collections of curiosities and specimens of natural history.
The interest and dedication of Margravine Caroline Luise of Baden helped expand the collection to a scientifically significant exhibition between 1752 and 1783. In 1784, the cabinet of natural history was moved to the facilities of the court library, and it was first opened to the bourgeoisie as a museum in 1785. In other words, the collections of today's natural history museum have been open to the public for over two hundred years!
The museum's current location at Friedrichsplatz was built between 1866 and 1872 and designed to house the cabinet of natural history and the court library. The building was destroyed by bombs in 1942, and many valuable items were lost. The rebuilding process was completed in 1972. Today, the State Museum of Natural History Karlsruhe once again ranks amongst the major museums of its kind in Germany.
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The Geology, Mineralogy and Sedimentology section is in charge of two collections: the Mineralogical Collection and the Geological-Petrographical Collection.
Mineralogical Collection
The Mineralogical Collection of the SMNK comprises about 40,000 specimens in two parts, both of which are documented in catalogues and on card files. A digitised catalogue is being prepared.
The systematic part of the collection comprises minerals from all over the world. A major portion is of high exhibition quality; many specimens serve as a scientific reference. The foundation of this collection consists of valuable historic items such as the “Little Collection of the Margravine Caroline Luise,” a donation from the empress Maria Theresa, the “Russian Collection” (a gift from tsar Alexander I) and a collection of polished plates of regional rocks in Baden. During the 20th century the collection was further complemented by several acquisitions. One particularly noteworthy aspect is the small collection of meteorites and tektites from all over the world.
The economic-geological part of the Mineralogical Collection especially focuses on parageneses of historical and no longer accessible deposits of nonferrous metals, barite and fluorite from the Black Forest.
Geological-Petrographical Collection
The State Museum of Natural History owns a historical geological-petrographical collection. It comprises 8,000 to 9,000 specimens and is stored off-site in Bad Wildbad. The foundation of this collection is the petrographical part, which consists of reference specimens of magmatites, sedimentary rocks and metamorphites. In addition, there is a group of “geological manifestations”, e.g. layering, folding, faulting, weathering and so on. The third aspect here is the historical collections of explorers such as Karl Wilhelm Futterer
The Geological-Petrographical Collection is documented only on index cards which were drawn up in the 1960s and 1970s. To facilitate a modern scientific use of this collection, digitised documentation is being prepared.
fonte: @edisonmariotti #edisonmariotti http://www.smnk.de/
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