APR 2023: There are countless museums in Germany where enthusiasts of gemology and fans of minerals, can discover the world of gemstones up close. Many of the museums in Germany are hidden insider tips. We have created an overview of places and cities where interested people can see and experience unique finds of gemstones and minerals.
Mineralogical Collection - Hamburg
Location: Museum of Nature Hamburg – Mineralogy, Grindelallee 48, 20146 Hamburg, Germany
Minerals, precious and gemstones, meteorites, ores and rocks: The holdings of the Mineralogical Collection of the University of Hamburg comprise around 90,000 objects, making it one of the largest of its kind in Germany. Of particular importance are nearly 1,000 extraterrestrial samples, including meteorites originating from the Moon and Mars. Mineralogy at the Museum der Natur Hamburg displays a selection of 1,500 exhibits on 500 m² of exhibition space over two levels. Well-known minerals like gold, silver or diamonds can be seen as well as a 424 kg thick iron meteorite and one of the largest antimonite crystal groups in the world. The expert advisor of our website,Dr. Schlüter, has overseen the exhibition for decades.
Museum of Natural History - Berlin
Location: Museum für Naturkunde Invalidenstr. 43, 10115 Berlin
The Museum of Natural History has one of the largest mineral collections in Germany. In total, this includes 200,000 pieces and contains 65% of all known minerals. The mineralogical show collection displays 1077 species of them. New showcases bring the history of mineralogy to life with minerals, models and historical equipment. But they also shed light on the aspect why minerals were the basis for the technical development of mankind in the past and why we cannot imagine life without them in the future.
Nature Treasury Gemstone & Amber Center - Ribnitz-Damgarten
Place: Nature Treasure Chamber Gemstone & Amber Center Ribnitzer Landweg 2, 18311 Ribnitz-Damgarten
The private exhibition includes over 400 ambers and their impressive color variations and finding places. A large part of the collection is taken up by the unique inclusions show, where animal and plant inclusions are displayed. The exhibition also includes about 2,000 precious stones from a total of 70 countries around the world and 50,000 individual specimens from the world of shells and snails.
German Gemstone Museum - Idar-Oberstein
Place: Foundation German Gemstone Museum Hauptstraße 118, 55743 Idar-Oberstein
The German Gemstone Museum presents a unique collection of around 10,000 exhibits of the most interesting and fascinating gemstones from all continents. The German Gemstone Museum Foundation displays almost all minerals known as “gemstones” from the region and from all over the world in more than 10,000 exhibits. The collection includes both rough and cut stones, as well as sculptures and engravings.
World of crystals museum - Dietingen
Place: Address: World of Crystals Museum Fronstraße 9, 78661 Dietingen, Germany
In Dietingen near Rottweil, right at the entrance to the town, lies the Museum Welt der Kristalle. Here you can immerse yourself in the impressive world of giant crystals. Sparkling gemstones and meter-high giant crystals weighing up to 3000 kg from all over the world can be marveled at in the museum and some of them can also be felt. On display will be over 900 objects with over 100 tons from over 45 different countries around the world.
Gemstone museum & historical cutting workshops - Cochem
Place: Gemstone museum & historical grinding mills Cochem Unterbachstraße 5, 56812 Cochem
Already in the first museum room you will be amazed by the variety of gemstones from all over the world and what impressive exhibits cutters make out of them. In another room there are extensive collections of minerals and fossils with numerous finds from the surroundings of Cochem. Here you can see precious gems from the nearby Eastern Eifel as well as extremely rare ammonites from overseas. There are 3-4 tours daily, so that everyone can find a suitable time. Particularly noteworthy is the historic agate cutting workshop and the incredibly large mineral exhibition.
Mineral Museum - Essen-Kupferdreh
Place: Mineral Museum Kupferdreher Str. 141, 45257 Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia
The Mineral Museum is located in the middle of Essen-Kupferdreh, with parking spaces in the courtyard. On several floors, interested people can see and touch minerals, bones and fossils in a variety of forms. This is very interesting especially for children. In the sound room you can make a lot of noise with quartz singing bowls, a stone xylophone and other things. Under the roof, a meditation room with benches and thick red cushions invites you to relax. In guided tours and workshops, visitors immerse themselves in the world of stones and minerals and their formation. Admission is free!!
Allgäu stone experience world - Oy-Mittelberg
Location: Allgäuer-Steinerlebniswelt – Bahnhof Oy-Mittelberg , Bahnhofstr. 15, 87466 Oy-Mittelberg
The Allgäu Stone Experience (minerals or crystal museum) is one of the museum attractions in the southern Allgäu. There are about 2,400 exhibits of crystals and also cut minerals from over 350 partly classical sites from Europe. These are all from own finds and have also been processed themselves. Therefore, the company also has its own grinding shop and “stone workshop” integrated.
Museum Mineralogia - Munich
Location: Mineralogia (entrance at the back opposite Pinakothek/Moderne) Theresienstr. 41, 80333 Munich
The Museum Mineralogia Munich shows the most outstanding exhibits of the Mineralogische Staatssammlung Munich, one of the great German mineralogical research collections. Among them are numerous significant pieces that are closely connected with the history of the Bavarian royal family. Particularly noteworthy among the exhibits are precious stones, such as the Leuchtenberg emerald and the King Ludwig diamond, as well as meteorites from Mars and the moon, including a 285-kilogram iron meteorite from Namibia.
Terra mineralia - Freiberg
Location: Terra mineralia Schlossplatz 4, 09599 Freiberg, Germany
With 3,500 minerals, gemstones and meteorites, terra mineralia, a permanent exhibition of the TU Bergakademie Freiberg, is a mineral show well worth seeing. The extraordinary exhibits from sites in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa and America come from the “Pohl-Ströher” Mineral Foundation” and invite you to a mineralogical journey around the world. In the neighboring Krügerhaus, the TU Bergakademie Freiberg presents an exhibition of German minerals – the Mineralogical Collection Germany. Beautiful and fascinating treasures from German sites await their discoverers here: silver bells from Freiberg, precious gemstones, beautiful agates as well as a gallery of crystal models and much more.