Top 10 Museums in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

In 1961, the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia acquired altogether 88 works by Paul Klee, which form the foundation of the museum’s collection. Celebrated in 1986 was the inauguration of the newly-constructed building of the Kunstsammlung am Grabbeplatz, with its characteristic black granite façade. Working in the tradition of Arne Jacobsen, the Copenhagen architectural office of a Dissing + Weitling created a noble, restrained building whose detailing is typical of the period, and which yielded primacy to the outstanding works of art on display. Inaugurated in July 2010 together with the reopening of the totally renovated existing building is an additional exhibition area measuring 2000 m², which features state-of-the-art exhibition technology and takes the form of two pillar-free exhibition halls – thereby bringing the total surface area to 5000 m².

Travel back in time through German history since 1945: Our exhibition starts with the post-War years, new beginnings and the division of Germany. Why did the Cold War come about? How did the two Germanies develop and what links existed between West Germany and Communist East Germany? What prompted Reunification and what challenges has Germany faced since? Political events and developments form the red thread running through the exhibition. Moreover, you will see a broad variety of objects relating to everyday life, culture, business life and world events. Each item in the exhibition has its own story to tell. We present the small private and the large public narratives that changed society. Contemporary witnesses report their personal experiences and memories of their youth. We offer additional special services for kids, families, school classes, students, adults and senior citizens, such as guided visits, audio guides and educational materials.

At first sight palatial redbrick facades and artistically adorned gables on buildings dotted around a grassy square are more reminiscent of an aristocratic residence than a coal mine. This was exactly one of the ideas behind the architecture. Today the “mansion of labour” in the west of Dortmund is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful and impressive testimonies to Germany’s industrial history. The engine house with its famous Jugendstil doorway is already an icon. But the museum’s outstanding industrial architecture is only one of many different attractive facets. The various sections of the exhibition will take you into a world of harsh working conditions, and the stories of the men and women who worked in coalmining during the 20th century will bring this vividly to life.

The extraction, processing and utilization of mineral geo-resources, subsumed here under the term ‘mining’, is a subject with great significance for the development of human civilization. The global importance of mining is increasing today, and will no doubt continue to do so in future. This is clear from the political campaigns and the intense media reactions associated with issues of raw material supplies and shortages, and also resource conservation (recycling and the use of renewable energy sources). The work of the Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum, as the leading international museum on the mining industry, takes place within this socially relevant context. As one of the Leibniz Association’s research museums, the DBM is devoted to investigating the extraction, processing and utilization of mineral raw materials in the context of social, cultural, ecological and economic dynamics, spanning different historical periods. The museum shows the lasting impact which these processes have had on the development of society, and preserves relevant evidence for future generations. In short: The Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum is the cultural memory of the mining industry.

People began chipping out the first lumps of “black gold” from the hillsides of the Ruhrgebiet around 300 years ago. The Nightingale Colliery will take you back to the time when miners could walk straight inside the galleries to get at the coal; and later sunk the first shafts below ground. Equipped with a helmet and pit lamp visitors can take a walk down the narrow gangway of our mining gallery to a genuine coal streak and experience the unique atmosphere of early mining. One of the oldest hauling engines in the region can be seen in operation in the engine house.