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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place
introPlanning a European city trip? Make sure you visit the local city museum first, to find out how history has shaped the very ground you’re standing on. These institutions are much more than just guardians of valuable treasure; through their exhibitions you’ll better understand the city’s present and future, including the inhabitants that you’ll encounter during your trip. [Photo: STAM, ©Phile Deprez]
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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place.
BaselBasel Historical Museum, Switzerland – The Historisches Museum Basel consists of three sites, with the most interesting among them housed in the Barfüsserkirche, a former church, where carefully designed exhibitions tell the history of the Swiss city from prehistoric times until now. Highlights include pre-Reformation sacred art, such as the Basel Dance of Death; the Basel Cathedral Treasury, a stunning collection of medieval tapestries; and the ‘Great Cabinet of Curiosities’, which features Renaissance and Baroque collections. English speakers receive an iPad that automatically translates museum signs.
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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place.
KrakowHistorical Museum of Kraków – The narrative of the city of Kraków is told through not one, but 19 sites spread across the city. Muzeum Historyczne Miasta Krakowa’s main site is the Krzysztofory Palace, but it also includes the Zwierzyniec House, a suburban apartment dating back a century, an underground museum, a bourgeois house and two sites related to the Jews in Nazi times: the Old Synagogue of Kazimierz and the Schindler enamel factory. [Photo: Zygmunt Put/Wikimedia Commons]
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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place.
LuxembourgLuxembourg City History Museum, Luxembourg – Lëtzebuerg City Museum’s mission – collect, preserve, document, exhibit and transmit continuously the cultural (tangible and intangible) heritage of the City of Luxembourg – translates into appealing exhibitions using multimedia technology. The building itself is a mix of old and new: take the slow-paced glass elevator, which lets you view the building’s rock foundations, up to a panorama of the Grund district and the Rham plateau on the upper levels. [Photo:© (c) Les 2 Musées de la Ville de Luxembourg]
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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place.
HamburgMuseum For Hamburg History – From ‘Hammaburg’, a missionary settlement, to a gateway to the world as a member of the Hanseatic League: Hamburg came a long way to transform into the hyper-modern harbour city it is today. You can learn all about it at the Museum Für Hamburgische Geschichte. The museum is about Hamburg and Hamburgers, too, such as tattooist Christian Warlich (1891-1964); the world-renowned ‘king’ of tattoo artists is honoured with an exhibition that runs through May 2020. [Photo: SHMH, Sinje Hasheider]
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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place.
BolognaPalazzo Pepoli, Bologna – All over Italy, you literally stumble over historical remnants of its rich past, but museums don’t always unlock them in the most accessible way. This is changing, with Palazzo Pepoli as a case in point. The history, culture and transformations of Bologna, from its Etruscan beginnings to the present day, are narrated in an engaging and interactive way, curated by architect Italo Lupi. Mario Bellini was responsible for the renovation of the medieval palace that forms the heart of Genus Bononiae, a cultural and artistic museum itinerary running through the historical centre of Bologna. [Photo: Palazzo Pepoli]
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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place.
ParisPavillon de l’Arsenal, Paris – When it opened in 1866, the Musée Carnavalet was the first European museum dedicated to a city. This temple of Parisian history in the Marais district is currently undergoing a major facelift, and is scheduled to reopen in 2020. In the meantime, the Pavillon de l’Arsenal in the 4th arrondissement gives an interesting overview of Parisian architecture and the urban evolution of the French capital – including a peek into the future, with more than 1,000 archived documents, photographs, maps, plans and films on display. Be sure to check out Paris, Metropolis 2020, a digital model made in partnership with Google and JCDecaux. [Photo: Dhekir/Wikimedia Commons]
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Tale Of A City: 12 European Museums That Give You A Sense Of Place.
STAMSTAM, Ghent – Once the largest city in medieval Europe, the university city of Ghent is now somewhat of a hidden gem. To uncover its rich history during your visit, visit Ghent City Museum, known as STAM. As soon as you set foot inside, you’ll be walking all over Ghent through an illuminated glass floor printed with an aerial photograph. A computer programme acts as a type of ‘chronological street view’, and lets you compare a digitised panoramic painting from 1534, a map from 1641, a 1912 ground plan and a recent aerial photograph. Through 300 collection pieces and multimedia applications, the history of the city comes to life. [Photo: ©Phile Deprez]
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