Goldfuss Museum, Bonn

The Goldfuss Museum is a captivating gem for anyone interested in paleontology and the history of life on Earth. Housed since 1911 in the stately Steinmann Institute building-featuring classicist and Baroque elements and the motto "With mind and hammer" above its entrance-the museum blends a nearly untouched 19th-century exhibition ambience with rich scientific content.

This university-run museum bears the name of Georg August Goldfuss, one of Germany’s foremost paleontologists, zoologists, and a pioneer of paleo art. He founded the natural history collection at the University of Bonn in 1818 and championed a dedicated paleontological exhibition room. Goldfuss’ legacy is tangible through truly historic specimens and even original drawings of early fossils.

Inside, you'll uncover a treasure trove of fossils-ranging from marine invertebrates, primitive plants, and early tetrapods, to giant skeletal specimens like plesiosaurs and Ichthyosaurs (including a 4-m long marine reptile). A standout is the early pterosaur reptile, famously illustrated by Goldfuss himself-an image now considered a milestone in the development of scientific paleo art.

Though primarily a show-and-tell collection, the museum also hosts guided tours, family days, and participates in International Museum Day. In recent years, it has expanded its outreach through temporary exhibitions highlighting fossil discoveries.