Schatzkammer Werden

About the museum

Werden Abbey was founded around 799 by St. Liudger. Over the centuries the monastery gathered a great treasure of goldsmiths' work, manuscripts and paintings. During secularization the abbey was dissolved and expropriated in 1802/03, and its property passed to Prussia. The abbey church became a parish church, and a small but precious part of the treasure remained in Werden and went to the parish of St. Ludgerus. Many other works, above all manuscripts, documents and goldsmiths' work, were sold and are now scattered across museums, libraries and private collections worldwide.

The surviving remainder was opened to the public in 1979. On roughly 240 square meters, the treasury shows about 80 works of art. The most important group consists of early medieval treasures, some of which, according to local Werden tradition, go back to Liudger himself. There are also gold and silver goldsmiths' works, ivory carvings, sculptures, reliefs, paintings, manuscripts, and late medieval and Baroque vestments.

The holdings are supplemented by part of the monastery library: of once more than 11,000 volumes, about 2,250 have survived. The owners of the treasury are the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and the parish of St. Ludgerus.

Highlights

• Werden Crucifix from around 1060, the oldest surviving large medieval bronze crucifix
• Late antique ivory pyxis with the oldest Christmas depiction in Germany
• Chalice of St. Liudger, one of the oldest and smallest Mass chalices in the Western world
• Werden reliquary box from the 13th century
• Around 2,250 surviving volumes of the monastery library

Permanent exhibition

• Schatz der Abtei Werden – Around 80 works of art from more than 1,200 years: early medieval treasures, goldsmiths' work, sculptures, paintings and vestments of the former abbey.

Founded

1979

Operated by

Propsteipfarre St. Ludgerus Essen-Werden

Director

Andrea Wegener

Admission & discounts

Reductions only with proof. Free admission with proof for students of art history, holders of the "Essen.dabei sein" card, and members of certain professional associations (e.g. ICOM, Arbeitsgemeinschaft kirchlicher Museen und Schatzkammern).

Accessibility

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

The building is only partly accessible (several steps and a staircase); if needed, please notify us in advance and the team will help. Toilets in the basement. Guide dogs and therapy dogs are allowed.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops

Children and young people up to 18 have free admission; special children's tours of the treasury and basilica can be booked, and a film invites young visitors on a journey of discovery. Children under 12 may only enter accompanied by an adult.

Getting there & parking

By car via the A 52, Essen-Haarzopf exit, then the B 224 (Alfredstraße, Bredeneyer Straße) and across the Ruhr to Werden toward the town center (Abteistraße). From the Werden stop it is about 7 minutes on foot to the basilica and the treasury.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Museum shop in the building; an umbrella stand in the foyer for wet umbrellas.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit