Naturkunde- und Mammut-Museum Siegsdorf

Current exhibitions

About the museum

The museum was prompted by a chance discovery: in 1975, two schoolboys found bones of a woolly mammoth about 45,000 years old in the Gerhartsreiter Graben ravine near Siegsdorf. On the initiative of the municipality, the remains were scientifically excavated in 1985; the skeleton is considered the largest and best-preserved of its kind in Europe.

In May 1995 the municipality of Siegsdorf opened a dedicated museum for the find on the Weiße Traun river. Across about 650 square meters on four levels, the exhibition spans 250 million years of southeastern Bavaria's geological history: from the formation of the Alps and marine fossils to the Ice Age with mammoth, cave lion, woolly rhinoceros and giant deer, and on to the region's first humans.

The friends' association, founded in 1997, funded projects including the bear cave with cave bear skeletons, set up in 2003, and outdoor mammoth replicas. Since 2010 the SteinZeitGarten (Stone Age Garden) right next to the museum has added hands-on stations on Stone Age techniques. In 2013 the museum welcomed its millionth visitor. After many years under the direction of Robert Darga, Manfred Heynck has headed the museum since 2024.

Highlights

• Europe's largest and best-preserved woolly mammoth skeleton
• Formation of the Alps and fossils from four prehistoric seas
• Bear cave with cave bear skeletons
• SteinZeitGarten with hands-on stations and family activity days
• Ball mill and life-size mammoth “Rudi” in the outdoor area
• Christkindl-Wallfahrts-Museum (Christ Child pilgrimage museum) with free admission

Permanent exhibitions

• Eiszeit und Mammut – The Siegsdorf woolly mammoth is the centerpiece of the Ice Age section, complemented by cave bears, a cave lion and the world of the first humans.
• Geologie – Entstehung der Alpen – Explains how marine sediments were folded up into the Alps by continental drift and then reshaped by glaciers.
• Fossilien – Fossilized organisms from the region's ancient seas, from tiny single-celled organisms to sharks.

Founded

1995

Operated by

Gemeinde Siegsdorf

Director

Manfred Heynck

Admission & discounts

The price page is headed “Eintrittspreise 2024” (admission prices 2024); the short overview on the home page lists the same figures. The Christkindl-Wallfahrts-Museum in the attic of the SteinZeitWerkstatt is free of charge.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• 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, all rooms are accessible. Animals are not allowed.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

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

Hands-on stations in the SteinZeitGarten; in summer, a family activity day every Thursday with a campfire and twist bread, water playground at the Kugelmühle. Children's programs from age 5; children's birthday parties (Stone Age or fossils, approx. 2.5 hours) from age 7.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Museum shop (including stone balls from the Kugelmühle).

Events & venue rental

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

Plan your visit