University museum of Bonn's Americanist studies with more than 10,000 objects from Indigenous cultures of the Americas and changing exhibitions – free admission.
From April 14, 2026
The exhibition traces how different societies have shaped the Cochabamba Valley in Bolivia – from the Inca transformation into a maize-growing region with thousands of storehouses to today's sacred sites. Texts in Spanish, English translation via QR code; end date not specified.
Bonn's Americas collection dates back to 1948, when the ethnologist and Americanist Hermann Trimborn built up a teaching and study collection for his field at the University of Bonn. It still belongs to the Department of Anthropology of the Americas (Altamerikanistik und Ethnologie), which is now part of the Institute of Archaeology and Cultural Anthropology.
The holdings have grown to more than 10,000 objects. They include archaeological finds from the pre-Columbian era as well as objects from present-day Indigenous societies of North, Central and South America. Some of them are accessible in a visible storage area in the basement.
With its large display windows, the museum on Oxfordstraße faces one of the busiest streets in downtown Bonn. It also serves as an exhibition, lecture, teaching and working space for students and researchers. Alongside teaching, the team organizes roundtables and workshops – in 2026, for example, on Inca landscapes and on Afro-Latin American religions. The changing exhibitions often grow out of the department's research projects, for instance in Bolivia, and are accompanied by lectures, workshops and guided tours.
Admission is free.
| Groups | €5 per personGuided tour €5 per person plus a donation; book at least two weeks in advance by phone or email. |
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Free admission, donations welcome.
Exhibition room on the first floor is accessible; the visible storage area in the basement can be reached by elevator; accessible restroom on the first floor.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
Stops Bertha-von-Suttner-Platz, Stadthaus or Friedensplatz, each a few minutes' walk; from the main train station just under 10 minutes on foot.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| Photography | Photography for private purposes allowed without flash or tripod. |
| Good to know | Public guided tours take place irregularly, often on the Dies Academicus (university open day). The visible storage area is accessible by advance booking. |
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