GeoMuseum der Universität zu Köln

About the museum

The GeoMuseum in its present form has existed since 2000. Previously, the University of Cologne had two separate museums in the new institute buildings for mineralogy and for geology-palaeontology, occupied in 1967. When the geological museum had to make way for the new GeoBibliothek, its most important pieces on Earth history were combined with the minerals and crystals and shown under a new name in the rooms of the former Mineralogical Museum.

The roots reach back further: a mineralogical-geological collection established in the 1920s was exhibited from 1938 in the so-called Rundbau at Südbahnhof. In addition, the city of Cologne had a natural history museum, housed first in the Severinstorburg and from 1902 in the Stapelhaus. Both collections were largely lost in the Second World War.

In the 1950s and 1960s the institute directors built up new collections through purchases, exchange and finds from excursions. In 1962 the rescued minerals and rocks of the municipal natural history museum were added as a loan. Among them is a bird's nest encrusted with calcareous tufa, which very probably comes from the teaching collection of Ferdinand Franz Wallraf and is thus the oldest traceable piece in the museum.

Today the museum shows a mineralogical display collection with themes such as meteorites, ore minerals from the Siegerland, quartz varieties, gemstones and synthetic crystals, as well as an exhibition on Earth history with large fossils.

Highlights

• Ichthyosaur and marine crocodile from Holzmaden, each over 2.5 m long
• Rare amphibian skeleton (Eryops) from the Permian of Texas
• Meteorites and tektites
• Minerals from Siegerland mining and agates
• Slice of a 1,400-year-old giant sequoia

Permanent exhibitions

• 4,56 Milliarden Jahre Erdgeschichte – Tour of Earth history from the formation of the solar system to the present, with large fossils such as the ichthyosaur and marine crocodile from Holzmaden.
• Mineralogische Schausammlung – Mineral specimens from around the world with focal points such as meteorites, ore minerals from the Siegerland, zeolites, gemstones and synthetic crystals.

Founded

2000

Operated by

Universität zu Köln, Institut für Geologie und Mineralogie

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Accessibility

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Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops

Children's group tours for daycare centres and schools. At the Cologne Museum Festival on International Museum Day in May there are hands-on activities such as gold panning, gem digging and fossil casting.

Getting there & parking

The museum is located in the lecture hall wing of the Geoscience Institutes; the entrance is on Paula-Kleinmann-Weg on the side facing the Grüngürtel.

Amenities & dining

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Events & venue rental

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Plan your visit