Travelling exhibition of the Luchs-Initiative Baden-Württemberg (Lynx Initiative Baden-Württemberg) at Schloss Brenz: roll-up banners on the lynx’s habitat, hunting behaviour and threats, plus a preserved specimen of the animal.
About the museum
The local history museum in Brenz Castle was founded in 1906 by senior teacher Hans Wagner and is one of the oldest museums in Baden-Württemberg. The impulse came from the painter Heinrich Eberhard, who showed studies in the Rittersaal (Knights' Hall) in the summer of 1906. Wagner contributed his stone collection of fossils from the Swabian Jura, which remains the core of the earth history section today.
The castle itself goes back to a medieval fortress; after its destruction in the Thirty Years' War, it was rebuilt from 1671/72 as a Renaissance castle with baroque elements. In 1848 the municipality bought the complex and used it as a town hall, school and at times as a church; the museum moved in in 1906. After extensive renovation, the castle has been open again since autumn 2011, and since 2012 it has also been an information point of the UNESCO Global Geopark Swabian Alb.
The collections were initially housed in the Knights' Hall and later in the Hans-Weiss-Saal, and are now on the third floor. They focus on the history of the castle and church and on village life, with tableware, farm tools and a collection of costumes from the lower Brenz valley, which is shown in its own room on the second floor.
Highlights
Fossil collection from the Swabian Jura
Costume collection from the lower Brenz valley
Historic castle rooms such as the Tafelzimmer (dining room)
Information point of the UNESCO Global Geopark Swabian Alb
Weaving room
Permanent exhibitions
Schloss- und Kirchengeschichte – The history of castle and fortress, of the Reformation, and of church and state; the Knights' Hall and the dining room convey the Baroque era.
Trachtensammlung und bäuerliches Leben – Costumes of the Swabian Alb and the lower Brenz valley with ribbons, bonnets and shawls; a weaving room shows the processing of raw materials.
Fossiliensammlung und Geopark-Infostelle – Fossils from the Swabian Jura, including small animals in very good condition, and information from the UNESCO Global Geopark Swabian Alb.
Founded
1906
Operated by
Gemeinde Sontheim an der Brenz
Admission & discounts
Adults
€2.50
Reduced
€1.50Eligible visitors, including people with severe disabilities (degree of disability 50 and above)
Children & teens
€1.50free up to age 5 · Children aged 6 to 13 pay €1.50, children up to 5 are admitted free; from age 14 the regular admission of €2.50 applies.
Visitors with disabilities
€1.50People with severe disabilities (degree of disability 50 or higher) pay reduced admission.
Groups
–Groups may visit during opening hours only with advance registration and within a limited group size (regular admission). Outside opening hours: guided tour flat fee plus admission.
Families
–When two adults pay admission, children and young people up to 18 are free.
Group tour outside opening hours (groups under 20 people)
€20plus regular admission; advance registration only
Group tour outside opening hours (groups of 20 or more)
€15plus regular admission; advance registration only
Costume tour "Die Schlosswache plaudert" (per group)
€40plus regular admission; advance registration only
Free admission for members of ICOM and the Museumsverband Baden-Württemberg (Baden-Württemberg Museum Association), and for holders of the AlbCard.
Accessibility
Partially wheelchair accessible
Elevator
Accessible restroom: no information
Accessible parking: no information
Service dogs welcome: no information
Tactile models & exhibits: no information
Sign language tours: no information
Easy-to-read materials: no information
Audio description: no information
According to the museum, Schloss Brenz has few barriers and has a passenger lift.
Kids & families
Kids’ admission
free up to age 5
Children and young people up to 18 enter free when two adults pay admission.
Getting there & parking
By car
Parking available
Castle parking lot, Sontheimer Straße 12, 89567 Sontheim an der Brenz (district of Brenz).
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
Spaces for rent
Up to 100 guests.
The castle's Knights' Hall (up to 100 guests), Hans-Weiss-Saal (up to 45 guests) and vaulted cellar (up to 20 guests) can be rented. The Knights' Hall is expected to be unavailable until autumn 2027 due to renovation; rentals during opening hours only by arrangement.