Schleswig-Holsteinisches Eiszeitmuseum

About the museum

In October 1994, a friends' association was founded in Sielbek near Eutin with the goal of building a museum on the Ice Age and erratic boulder research in Schleswig-Holstein. In April 1999, the Eiszeitmuseum first opened in Stolpe on a former farm; the following year the association received its present name. In 2003 the exhibition moved to Bordesholm, before the museum found a permanent home in August 2006 in a small barn in the Nienthal on the outskirts of Lütjenburg.

In 2011 and 2012, the exhibition was completely redesigned with scientific support from the University of Hamburg and reopened in May 2012; since then a 3.60-meter-tall woolly mammoth has been the eye-catcher. The museum is run by the nonprofit association Schleswig-Holsteinisches Eiszeitmuseum with around 100 members; since 2018 the scientific direction has been in the hands of a geoscientist.

In terms of content, the museum shows how the Scandinavian ice sheet shaped the landscape of Schleswig-Holstein, brought rocks from almost two billion years of Earth history to the Baltic coast, and how animals and people lived in the Ice Age steppe. Under the motto "Wissenschaft zum Anfassen" (science to touch), many pieces may be touched; in addition there are changing special exhibitions and numerous programs for children, schools, and groups.

Highlights

• Life-size woolly mammoth (3.60 m)
• Erratic boulders and fossils from almost two billion years of Earth history
• Glacier-polished stones and a mammoth molar to touch
• Giant deer and a model of the Ice Age steppe landscape
• Ice Age garden with soil profile outdoors
• Ice Age workshop for preparing fossils and polishing amber

Permanent exhibitions

• Eiszeit und Klima – How glaciers form, how far south the ice sheet reached during the Weichselian glaciation, and what traces it left in the landscape of Schleswig-Holstein.
• Leben mit dem Eis – Mammoth, giant deer, and reindeer in the barren steppe in front of the ice, as well as tools, clothing, and jewelry of the first modern humans in northern Europe.
• Reise durch die Erdgeschichte – Rocks transported by the ice from almost two billion years – from plutonic and metamorphic rocks to sediments with fossils –, complemented by the soils of Schleswig-Holstein and the Ice Age garden.

Founded

1999

Operated by

Schleswig-Holsteinisches Eiszeitmuseum e. V.

Director

Dr. Vera Laurenz-Heuser

Admission & discounts

Card payment possible. Dogs have free admission. Members of the museum association visit the museum free of charge year-round.

Accessibility

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

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations
• Playground / play area
• Kids’ birthday parties

Many exhibits may be touched; there are also stone puzzles, a coloring corner, and Ice Age stuffed animals. Museum rally for children from about 2nd grade (included in admission), Ice Age workshop with fossil preparation and amber polishing, Stone Age painting, instrument making, and Ice Age birthday parties.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on the L 165 between Lütjenburg and Schönberg; access from Kiel and Oldenburg via the B 202, from Plön and Lübeck via the B 430.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

Museum café with coffee and tea specialties, ice cream, and cake – also without museum admission. Museum shop with specialist books on beach stones and fossils, children's books, as well as fossils and minerals.

Events & venue rental

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

Plan your visit