Musée zoologique de la ville de Strasbourg
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History
In 1804, the city of Strasbourg purchased the collections of local doctor and naturalist Johann Hermann (1738-1800). His collections (zoology, botany, mineralogy) were first exhibited in his apartment, before being successively accommodated in the buildings of the Great Seminary (adjacent to the cathedral) and in the Krutenau neighbourhood.
After the Franco-Prussian War, Strasbourg became the regional capital of the new Reichsland. The University of Strasbourg was created anew in 1872, and the management and curation of the collections were entrusted to it. Following the example implemented by Wilhelm von Humboldt in Berlin, collections were divided between the different faculties, although the zoological collections remained the property of the city. A spacious new building was erected for Zoology from 1890 to 1893, and the collection continued to grow.
In 2010, the museum acquired the first osteotheque in northeastern France.
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Renovation
The museum closed to the public on September 22, 2019 after the European Heritage Days. Three years of work were planned to completely renovate the building. The reopening is now announced for 2025. The cost of the works amounts to 13 million euros.
The renovation program is conducted jointly by the University and city of Strasbourg. It will allow the museum to reach current insulation, accessibility and security standards, and renew its permanent exhibition. The renovated building will encompass 2000 square meters of exhibits, as well as 800 square meters dedicated to its audiences.
Since October 2020, the collections have been kept at the Center for Study and Conservation of the Museums of the City of Strasbourg. They will find their way back into the museum at the end of the renovation.
Collections
The museum houses a variety of specimens, including birds, mammals, marine invertebrates and insects. The collection originates from the natural history cabinet of Jean Hermann, and were enriched throughout history, thanks to gifts, expeditions and purchases.
Many specimens were acquired thanks to the proximity between the museum and scientists from all across Europe. Exchanges and interpersonal relations allowed the successive directors to receive collections from the Paris National Museum of Natural History, as well as from the German scientific expeditions of the 1890s and 1900s.
Collections also include historical books and prints, as well as plaster and glass pedagogical models made by doctor Louis Auzoux and brothers Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka, respectively. The museum holds specimens belonging to species that are rarely seen, like the coelacanth and night parrot, or declared extinct, such as the thylacine, great auk or passenger pigeon.
Collections include:
- 900,000 insects
- 200,000 molluscs
- 18,000 birds
- 10,000 mammals
- 5000 reptiles and amphibians
Since 2013, the Museum has been publishing its data of the GBIF portal.