Museum Sankturbanhof

About the museum

The building goes back to the 13th century: in connection with the founding of the town of Sursee, the administrative building of St. Urban Abbey was built here, from which the monastery managed its rent-paying estates in the region and which also served as a guesthouse. The present building dates from 1596 to 1598. Its Abbot's Hall (Äbtesaal) on the fifth floor, with wall paintings from 1606, is considered a rare example of a Renaissance banquet hall in Central Switzerland.

In 1979 the population of Sursee approved the founding of a city museum foundation, which was to set up and run a museum in the Sankturbanhof and promote the visual arts. In November 2004 it voted yes to renovating the house and to a regional museum operation. The firm Masswerk AG from Kriens designed the new access and fit-out, as part of a renovation of the entire row of buildings from the Stadttheater to the Sankturbanhof.

Today the museum sees itself as a house at the intersection of art and culture, past and present. The collection has grown historically and consists of two major donations: the weapons collection of Carl Beck, with hand and pole weapons, and the collection of Georg Staffelbach, with reverse glass painting, religious art and works by the Sursee goldsmith families Zülly and Staffelbach. The museum also looks after the city art collection of Sursee. Each year, four exhibitions combine historical objects with contemporary art.

Highlights

• Abbot's Hall with wall paintings from 1606
• Collection presentation "Sursee: erleben" on the city's history
• Carl Beck weapons collection
• Georg Staffelbach collection with reverse glass painting and goldsmith work
• City art collection of Sursee
• Museum park and children's art room

Permanent exhibitions

• Sursee: erleben – Collection display that uses selected objects to show the history of Sursee from the early modern period to today's questions facing a growing region.
• Äbtesaal – Renaissance hall on the fifth floor, with wall paintings from 1606.

Operated by

Stiftung Sankturbanhof Sursee

Admission & discounts

Free admission also with the Swiss Museum Pass and the Raiffeisen card, for members of the museum associations ICOM and VMS, for members and patrons of the friends' circle, and for sponsors. Municipal school classes from Sursee, Geuensee, Oberkirch and Schenkon pay nothing; teachers have free admission. Children's ateliers (ages 6 to 12, 2 hours) cost CHF 5 per child.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Hands-on stations
• Playground / play area

Children's art workshops for ages 6 to 12 on Wednesdays or Thursdays (2 hours, max. 15 children), and a children's art room for ages 0 to 6 to play and create in; accompanying adults are responsible for supervision there.

Getting there & parking

Sursee station can be reached at regular intervals from Olten, Bern, Basel and Lucerne.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Museum shop with books, postcards and children's literature; walkable museum park (access via the ticket desk).

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Corporate events
• Weddings / ceremonies

Up to 50 guests.

Abbot's Hall on the fifth floor (35 to 50 people), meeting room (up to 8 people) and museum park for aperitifs; weddings Tuesday to Friday, arranged through the Sursee civil registry office.

Plan your visit