Basel Historical Museum – Barfüsserkirche

Basel
Switzerland
Glaubenswelten des Mittelalters. © Historisches Museum Basel, Foto: Natascha Jansen
Glaubenswelten des Mittelalters. © Historisches Museum Basel, Foto: Natascha Jansen
Glaubenswelten des Mittelalters. © Historisches Museum Basel, Foto: Natascha Jansen
History and tradition
The Basel Historical Museum with its three sites is widely regarded as the most important museum of cultural history on the Upper Rhine. It collects, conserves, records and researches objects and artefacts of relevance to our cultural heritage for future generations, tells visitors the story of Basel, and is a place for discourse and engagement with both present and future.
The Basel Historical Museum, housed in the Barfüsserkirche since 1894, shows selected aspects of the history of Basel from prehistoric times to the present. The focus of the exhibits from the pre-Reformation period is on sacred works of art such as the Basel Dance of Death and Basel Cathedral Treasury. The exhibition in the basement, headed “Understanding the World”, comprises a magnificent array of medieval tapestries with their fantasy worlds and scenes of real life, the Renaissance and Baroque collections, now grouped together in one “Great Cabinet of Curiosities”, and Basel’s rich archaeological heritage. Among the other highlights are the coin cabinet and the Burgundian Booty.

47.554526, 7.589333

Address

Basel Historical Museum – Barfüsserkirche

Barfüsserplatz 7
4051
Basel
Switzerland
Opening hours
Open all year from
Tuesday - Sunday: 10:00-17:00

Closed on
Contact and additional information
+41 61 205 86 00

Currently in this museum

HMB
Event

In a city full of wood and fire, there was a constant risk of fire. To prevent and extinguish fires, people used different means at all times - water was always present.

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In a city full of wood and fire, there was a constant risk of fire. To prevent and extinguish fires, people used different means at all times - water was always present.

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Several thousand years of Basel's history lie beneath our feet. The Celts built two important settlements on the bend of the Rhine, the Romans conquered the cathedral hill and incorporated Basel into ...

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Music was the real passion of silk ribbon manufacturer Lukas Sarasin (1730-1802). He sourced compositions from practically all the leading music centers in Europe at the time. The tour gives a brief ...

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The small exhibition gives an insight into the creation of his jewelry pieces with the design drawings and semi-finished products of the Basel goldsmith Pierre Fürbringer (1934 - 2017). The ...

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In a city full of wood and fire, there was a constant risk of fire. To prevent and extinguish fires, people used different means at all times - water was always present.

HMB
Event

Music was the real passion of silk ribbon manufacturer Lukas Sarasin (1730-1802). He sourced compositions from practically all the leading music centers in Europe at the time. The tour gives a brief ...

HMB
Event

Planetary orbits, continents and human organs aroused curiosity and led to revolutionary discoveries - also in Basel.

HMB
Event

In a city full of wood and fire, there was a constant risk of fire. To prevent and extinguish fires, people used different means at all times - water was always present.

HMB
Event

Music was the real passion of silk ribbon manufacturer Lukas Sarasin (1730-1802). He sourced compositions from practically all the leading music centers in Europe at the time. The tour gives a brief ...

HMB
Event

Basel, 16th century: The center of humanism, book printing and publishing. Erasmus, a Catholic, is drawn to Basel. Apart from his writings, what else did Erasmus leave Basel? How is Erasmus still ...

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Democracy is a form of government in which power comes from the people. Nevertheless, not everyone in a community has ever been allowed to vote or take part in elections. Who was allowed to have a say ...

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Event

A single family influenced the musical world of the Renaissance like no other: From Venice to London - the Bassanos were instrument makers, musicians and composers. Fittingly, this concert is carried ...

Medieval Worlds of Faith
Exhibition
Basel
,
Switzerland

Showcased here will be medieval works of art from churches in Switzerland and on the Upper Rhine. The impressive sculptures attesting to the veneration of saints are a reminder of how society was ...

Zeitsprünge – Basler Geschichte in Kürze
Exhibition
Basel
,
Switzerland

Around 200,000 people from 200 nations live in Basel. The city forms the centre of a large tri-national region with a long history. The ‘Zeitsprünge’ exhibition offers highlights of the events and ...

Terrace in front of a women's pavilion in the «Friedmatt», around 1930, photo archive UPK
Exhibition
Basel
,
Switzerland

The exhibition tells the story of psychiatry over the last 150 years. It provides an insight into patient histories from the Basel clinic and shows the changes in diagnoses and therapy methods. And ...