Museum für Haustierkunde „Julius Kühn“

About the museum

Julius Kühn (1825–1910), the first professor of agriculture at a German university, came to Halle in 1862 and founded the Institute of Agriculture with a domestic animal garden. For more than a century, until 1969, livestock and their wild ancestors were kept there for teaching and breeding experiments. Animals that died mostly entered the collection as skeletons, less often as dermoplastic mounts, and the crossbreeding experiments were also documented on thousands of glass photographic plates.

The result was one of the world's most important collections on domestic animals, with thousands of skeletons, a large wool collection and one of the most extensive archaeozoological reference collections in Germany. It also documents extinct or rare breeds as well as famous breeding animals such as the Thoroughbred stallion Dark Ronald. The glass photographic plates are registered as nationally valuable cultural property.

The museum opened in 1988 in a listed horse stable from 1884, which today belongs to the university's Steintor campus. In several sections, the exhibition provides an overview of sheep and goats, cattle, horses, and pigs and dogs. Since 2009, the collection has been managed by the Zentralmagazin Naturwissenschaftlicher Sammlungen (Central Repository of Natural Science Collections) of Martin Luther University.

Highlights

• Sections on sheep and goats, cattle, horses, and pigs and dogs
• Specimens of historical and extinct livestock breeds
• A glimpse into one of the world's largest collections on domestic animals
• Historic 1884 horse stable on the Steintor campus

Permanent exhibitions

• Domestikation und Zucht von Nutztieren – Permanent exhibition on sheep, goats, cattle, horses and pigs with skeletons, dermoplastic mounts, wool samples and historical photos from Julius Kühn's domestic animal garden.

Founded

1988

Operated by

Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Zentralmagazin Naturwissenschaftlicher Sammlungen

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

All guided tours and events of the Zentralmagazin are free. Participates in the “Schlüsselbund Hallesche Museen” campaign (collector's card available here for free).

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

Accessible according to the university; no details given.

Kids & families

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

Getting there & parking

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

Amenities & dining

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

Events & venue rental

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

Plan your visit