Forschungsmuseum Schöningen

About the museum

The museum owes its existence to the Schöningen Spears: in 1994, archaeologists working in the lignite open-cast mine near Schöningen came across wooden hunting weapons about 300,000 years old, considered the oldest completely preserved wooden weapons in human history. To display the finds close to where they were discovered and to continue researching them, a research and visitor center was built at the edge of the mine.

The architectural competition was won in 2010 by the Zurich firm Holzer Kobler Architekturen; construction was funded by the State of Lower Saxony, with the town of Schöningen as the client. In June 2013 the building opened under the name "paläon," derived from the Greek word for "old."

Visitor numbers fell well short of expectations, and the operating company ran into financial difficulties. On July 1, 2019, the Lower Saxony State Office for Heritage Conservation took over the building and continued to run it as the Forschungsmuseum Schöningen. Since January 2025 it has been part of the 3Landesmuseen Braunschweig and is affiliated as a branch with the Staatliches Naturhistorisches Museum (State Natural History Museum).

The permanent exhibition takes visitors back to the Paleolithic, shows the original spears and uses the layers of earth to illustrate the climate history between two ice ages. In a glass-walled laboratory, visitors can watch the researchers at work; special exhibitions that change every year and the spacious outdoor grounds at the edge of the mine round out the offering.

Highlights

• Original Schöningen Spears, the oldest completely preserved wooden weapons in the world
• Exhibition right next to the discovery site and the ongoing excavation
• Glass-walled research laboratory and interactive visitor lab
• Guided tours of the archaeological excavation (April to October)
• Award-winning architecture at the edge of the former open-cast mine, with park grounds and playground

Permanent exhibitions

• Dauerausstellung – Die Schöninger Speere – Staged scenes take visitors back about 300,000 years to a Paleolithic hunt, centered on the original spears from the nearby discovery site. Another focus is the climate and environmental history between two ice ages.

Founded

2013

Operated by

3Landesmuseen Braunschweig (Außenstelle des Staatlichen Naturhistorischen Museums)

Director

PD Dr. Mike Reich

Admission & discounts

Special exhibitions are included in the admission price. Your ticket gives you free admission to the Staatliches Naturhistorisches Museum Braunschweig for three months from the date of purchase (and vice versa). Free admission for members of the Schöninger Speere e. V. and the Gesellschaft für Naturkunde, and with an ICOM, Deutscher Museumsbund or Museumsverband Niedersachsen und Bremen membership card.

Accessibility

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

The building and terrace are wheelchair-accessible. Guide dogs and assistance dogs are allowed; other animals are not. Tours and workshops can also be booked for groups in Easy Language (Leichte Sprache).

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Hands-on stations
• Baby changing facilities
• Playground / play area
• Kids’ birthday parties

Family hands-on tour on weekends with spear throwing, interactive visitor lab, park grounds with playground and adventure trail. Stone Age children's birthday parties (2 hours with a tour and workshop, €105 for 15 children and one adult). Programs for daycare groups from age 4 and all types of schools.

Getting there & parking

Via the A2: coming from Braunschweig/Hannover, take the Helmstedt-West exit; coming from Magdeburg/Berlin, take the Marienborn/Helmstedt exit, then take the B244 to Schöningen and the L652 toward Hötensleben; the museum is on the left. Bicycle racks next to the bus stop and in front of the café; Schöningen lies on the Berlin–Hameln cycle route.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

Café and bistro "zum Elmsee" in the museum, open Wed–Sun 11:30–17:00. Museum shop with regional products.

Events & venue rental

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

Plan your visit