The Historical Museum of Bamberg (German: '' Historisches Museum Bamberg'') is a museum in

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castle. C ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, located in the ''Alte Hofhaltung'' next to the city's cathedral. Together with the

Villa Dessauer The Villa Dessauer is a mansion in Bamberg, Germany, which is used as an art gallery by the local City Council. The edifice was built in 1884 by the Jewish merchant Carl Dessauer. During the Nazi regime Nazi Germany (lit. "National S ...

and the Collection Ludwig, a collection of

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises mainl ...

and

faience Faience or faïence (; ) is the general English language term for fine tin-glazed pottery. The invention of a white pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an oxide of tin to the slip of a lead glaze, was a major ad ...

, it belongs to the museums of the city.

History

In 1838 Vicar Joseph Hemmerlein passed his large

art collection A museum is distinguished by a collection of often unique objects that forms the core of its activities for exhibitions, education, research, etc. This differentiates it from an archive or library, where the contents may be more paper-based, repla ...

on to the City of Bamberg. This is regarded as the birth of the museum. In the following century the museum continuously added new objects to the collection. The museum was located in the

Michaelsberg Abbey Michaelsberg Abbey (german: Abtei Michaelsberg) is a former monastery of the Benedictine Order, belonging to the Subiaco Congregation (1064-2011). The monastery is situated on the ''Michaelsberg'' ("St. Michael's Mount"), about 40 metres above ...

until 1935. In 1938 it was moved in the Alte Hofhaltung, near the cathedral of Bamberg.

Collection

The Historical Museum Bamberg owns a fund of historical objects, which range from the prehistory to the current century. Beside a large art collection and stone sculptures, there are several handicraft objects, clocks from the 16th–19th centuries and a wide range of coins from numerous different ages. Furthermore, the Historical Museum Bamberg has a collection of astronomical and mathematical tools, as well as a compilation of

nativity scene In the Christianity, Christian tradition, a nativity scene (also known as a manger scene, crib, crèche ( or ), or in Italian language, Italian ''presepio'' or ''presepe'', or Bethlehem) is the special exhibition, particularly during the Christ ...

s exhibited during the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

season.

External links

Bamberg City Museum website
Buildings and structures in Bamberg Museums in Bavaria Local museums in Germany {{Bavaria-struct-stub