Dorfmuseum Alter Bären

About the museum

The house on Burgdorfstrasse was the village inn of Konolfingen for centuries. It stood on the road between Burgdorf and Thun and in the village where the high court met; as one of only five taverns in the lower district court, it therefore had the right to serve wine, offer meals and lodge guests. According to dendrochronological dating, the roof structure dates from 1602/03 and is regarded as an intact building structure of the early 17th century.

At the beginning of the 18th century, the owner Jakob Schmid rebuilt the inn and extended the barn with a dance hall. After the barn burned down in 1959, the new inn was built next to it and opened in 1970. In 1981 the Bachmann family sold the Alter Bären to the municipality of Konolfingen, which, following a vote in 1994, had it comprehensively renovated with a credit of 1.2 million francs and converted the roof space into a multipurpose room.

Today the village museum, run by the Verein Alter Bären, shows in twelve rooms and in the corridors of the ground floor and first floor how people lived and worked in the past. On view are, among other things, the taproom, kitchen and bistro, a pantry and cheese room, a sewing room and doctor's room, a railway room and music room, as well as a room on the Berner Alpenmilch Gesellschaft. Concerts, theatre and readings take place regularly in the roof space.

Highlights

• Early 17th-century inn with originally preserved roof structure
• Twelve rooms on everyday life, crafts and village history
• Railway room and room on the Berner Alpenmilch Gesellschaft
• Supervised play room for children
• Roof space for concerts, theatre and readings

Permanent exhibition

• Dorfmuseum in zwölf Räumen – The permanent exhibition shows former everyday life and the village history of Konolfingen in the taproom, kitchen, sewing room, doctor's room, railway and music rooms and other rooms.

Founded

1978

Operated by

Verein Alter Bären

Admission & discounts

For guided tours, the discounts with the Raiffeisen card or Museum Pass are not granted.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: not available
• 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

The museum in the former inn is not wheelchair accessible: many stairs, steps and narrow doors.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Playground / play area

In the play room, children can play and be looked after while their parents visit the museum. The rooms are not accessible (stairs), which should be considered for prams.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties

The roof space and the vaulted cellar can be hired; rental prices and terms of use are available as a PDF on the website.

Plan your visit