The Fisheries and Maritime Museum ( da, Fiskeri- og Søfartsmuseet) is a privately owned museum in

Esbjerg Esbjerg (, ) is a seaport town and seat of Esbjerg Municipality on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. By road, it is west of Kolding and southwest of Aarhus. With an urban population of 71,698 (1 January 2022)

, Denmark. Opened to the public in 1968, it consists of a saltwater

aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

for native species and a "sealarium" (exhibit for

seals Seals may refer to: * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impress an emblem, used as a means of a ...

) as well as indoor and outdoor exhibitions on Danish fisheries and shipping.

History

The idea of creating a Danish fisheries museum with an aquarium came from the journalist Hakon Mielche in 1941. In 1962, a planning committee was formed in Esbjerg which soon led to the collection of artefacts. Building began in 1966, allowing the privately owned institution to be opened to the public in 1968. From the start, the museum contained a fisheries exhibition and a saltwater aquarium. A sealarium was added in 1976. In 1989 a start was made on an outdoor exhibition which was later extended. The museum established a research unit in 1994, followed in 2000 by the Centre for Maritime and Regional Studies (''Center for Maritime og Regionale Studier''), a cooperative venture with the

University of Southern Denmark The University of Southern Denmark ( da, Syddansk Universitet, lit=South Danish University, abbr. SDU) is a university in Denmark that has campuses located in Southern Denmark and on Zealand. The university offers a number of joint programmes in ...

. In 1999, a five-storey museum building with almost of floor space was inaugurated, housing a new permanent exhibition, a library, storage rooms, an archive and offices. Provision was also made for temporary exhibitions while the educational facilities were modernized. A new saltwater aquarium was installed in 2002 and a new "sealarium" (exhibit for seals) in 2013. The largest aquarium tank contains saltwater and is home to species such as

cod Cod is the common name for the demersal fish genus '' Gadus'', belonging to the family Gadidae. Cod is also used as part of the common name for a number of other fish species, and one species that belongs to genus ''Gadus'' is commonly not call ...

halibut Halibut is the common name for three flatfish in the genera '' Hippoglossus'' and ''Reinhardtius'' from the family of right-eye flounders and, in some regions, and less commonly, other species of large flatfish. The word is derived from ''h ...

conger eel ''Conger'' ( ) is a genus of marine congrid eels. It includes some of the largest types of eels, ranging up to 2 m (6 ft) or more in length, in the case of the European conger. Large congers have often been observed by divers during t ...

gilthead seabream The gilt-head (sea) bream (''Sparus aurata''), known as Orata in antiquity and still today in Italy and Tunisia (known as "Dorada" in Spain, "Dourada" in Portugal and "Dorade Royale" in France), is a fish of the bream family Sparidae found in th ...

greater spotted dogfish The nursehound (''Scyliorhinus stellaris''), also known as the large-spotted dogfish, greater spotted dogfish or bull huss, is a species of catshark, belonging to the family Scyliorhinidae, found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. It is general ...

and

thornback ray The thornback ray (''Raja clavata''), or thornback skate, is a species of ray fish in the family Rajidae. Distribution The Thornback ray is found in the Atlantic coastal waters of Europe and western Africa. It is also present from south Afri ...

, while the sealarium contains and is home to

grey seal The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is found on both shores of the North Atlantic Ocean. In Latin Halichoerus grypus means "hook-nosed sea pig". It is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or " ...

and

harbour seal The harbor (or harbour) seal (''Phoca vitulina''), also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinniped (walruses, eared sea ...

By 2007, the museum had welcomed six million visitors since its opening but thereafter, as a result of a considerable decrease in the number of Germans visiting Denmark, it experienced a few difficult years. By 2014, however, the museum was once again in good stead thanks to the enthusiasm of its staff and the support of

Esbjerg Municipality Esbjerg Municipality () is a municipality (Danish, '' kommune'') in Region of Southern Denmark on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. Its mayor is Jesper Frost Rasmussen, from the Venstre (Center-Right Party) political pa ...

Sphere of interest

The museum addresses the areas of Danish fisheries, offshore activities, maritime environment, maritime mammels, shipping in the west of

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

and the natural history of the

Wadden Sea The Wadden Sea ( nl, Waddenzee ; german: Wattenmeer; nds, Wattensee or ; da, Vadehavet; fy, Waadsee, longname=yes; frr, di Heef) is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It lies between the coast of northwestern conti ...

''Claus Sørensen'' E.1

The 1931-built ''Claus Sørensen'' E.1 is a preserved fishing cutter that is also used for educational tours around the

port of Esbjerg The Port of Esbjerg on the southwest coast of Jutland is a competitor to Aarhus and Hamburg for freight. Built by the State in 1868, it was once Denmark's principal fishing harbour but today has become Europe's leading port for shipping offshore ...

and the

. She was built at the Søren Kjeldsen shipyard at Esbjerg as ''Godthaab'' (E.39), later becoming ''Zoar'' (E.39). When ''Zoar'' retired from fishing in 1978, she was purchased by the museum, renamed ''Claus Sørensen'' and renumbered E.1. In November 2021 operation of E.1 was taken over by local shipowner Esvagt, for technical and safety matters, with the company's retired seafarers providing crew. The previous E.1 was the

Skagen Skagen () is Denmark's northernmost town, on the east coast of the Skagen Odde peninsula in the far north of Jutland, part of Frederikshavn Municipality in Nordjylland, north of Frederikshavn and northeast of Aalborg. The Port of Skagen is ...

cutter, ''Dana'' (S.49), now preserved ashore at the museum.

Opening hours

Located at No. 2 Tarphagevej, some 4 km northwest of the centre of Esbjerg, the museum is open every day from 10 am to 4 pm with extensions to 5 or 6 pm as daylight permits.

References

External links

Fisheries and Maritime Museum website
{{Coord, 55, 29, 22, N, 8, 24, 42, E, type:landmark_region:DE-HB, display=title Aquaria in Denmark Buildings and structures in Esbjerg Museums established in 1968 Museums in the Region of Southern Denmark Tourist attractions in the Region of Southern Denmark Maritime museums in Denmark Museum ships in Denmark Fishing museums