Steno Museet

About the museum

The Steno Museet came into being on March 25, 1994, from the merger of two Aarhus collections: the museum of the history of science founded in 1981 by Professor Olaf Pedersen and the museum of medical history created in 1982 by the chief physician Ejner Hovesen. It is named after the Danish physician and natural scientist Niels Stensen (1638–1686), internationally known as Nicolaus Steno, who is considered an anatomist and one of the founders of geology.

The museum building stands in the University Park of Aarhus on a former barracks site and, with its yellow structures, takes up the architecture of the university by C. F. Møller. The university provided the land, and the building was financed, among others, with funds from the Villum Foundation. Until 2003 a foundation ran the museum; since then it has belonged to the Faculty of Science and Technology of Aarhus Universitet and, together with Ole Rømer Observatoriet, the greenhouses in the Botanical Garden, and the Herbarium, forms the Science Museerne.

The exhibitions span from astronomy and particle physics to the history of disease, health care, and images of the body. Special features include a planetarium with 56 seats under an eleven-meter-wide dome, the complete study of the Nobel laureate Jens Christian Skou, and large measuring instruments from CERN. A large Foucault pendulum characterizes the entrance. Outside is the medicinal herb garden, which originally goes back to a herbal book of 1546 and was redesigned in 2018.

Highlights

• Planetarium with shows on weekends and public holidays at 12:00 and 14:00
• Study of the Nobel laureate Jens Christian Skou
• Exhibition on particle physics with large instruments from CERN
• Medical history from the plague to modern health care
• Foucault pendulum in the entrance hall
• Medicinal herb garden in the University Park

Permanent exhibitions

• Det nysgerrige menneske – Shows how curiosity led to discoveries in atomic and particle physics – with equipment weighing tons from CERN, a cloud chamber, and Niels Bohr's atomic model.
• Videnskab er lidenskab – Asks what drives researchers and shows, among other things, the complete office of the Nobel laureate Jens Christian Skou as well as an aquarium with animal hearts.
• Gentests og tandbørster – Tells a hundred years of Danish health care, for example through a doctor's office from the health insurance fund era and the first school dental clinic in Aarhus.

Founded

1994

Operated by

Science Museerne, Aarhus Universitet

Admission & discounts

Free admission also for students and employees of Aarhus Universitet, press with ID, and members of Steno Museets Venner, Jysk Medicinhistorisk Selskab, and Botanisk Haves Venner.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

Elevator and step-free access to the exhibitions, the planetarium, and most of the herb garden. Wheelchairs can be borrowed. Accessible parking spaces directly in front of the main entrance. Guide dogs and assistance dogs are welcome.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Hands-on stations

During the school holidays there are activities for children, as well as events such as the Teddy Bear Hospital. Many exhibitions invite hands-on experimentation, for example a rainbow tunnel, a particle soccer game, or a heart aquarium. For the planetarium the museum recommends a minimum age of 6.

Getting there & parking

The museum is located in Aarhus's University Park next to the Naturhistorisk Museum and Antikmuseet.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Restaurant: not available
• Museum shop
• Coat check
• Lockers
• Wi-Fi: not available

Small café with cold and hot drinks, ice cream, and sweets; during holiday weeks 7 and 42 also sandwiches, fruit, and cake. Food you bring yourself may be eaten in the café or the herb garden. Museum shop with science toys, books, and gifts. Lockable lockers in the cloakroom. Wi-Fi only for groups in class and university students.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Plan your visit