Deutsches Bergbau Museum

German Mining Museum

Useful Information

Location:	Am Bergbaumuseum 28, 44791 Bochum. Europaplatz (formerly Wielandstraße), Bochum. Underground station Deutsches Bergbau-Museum, line U 35, from Bochum Hauptbahnhof in the direction of Herne. (51.488836, 7.216634)
Open:	All year Tue-Sun, Hol 9:30-17:30. Closed 01-JAN, 01-MAY, 24-DEC, 26-DEC, 31-DEC. [2022]
Fee:	Adults EUR 10, Children (6-17) EUR 5, Children (0-5) free, Students EUR 5, Apprentices EUR 5, Unemployed EUR 5, Disabled EUR 5, Families (2+4) EUR 22. [2022]
Classification:	Mining Museum Replica Underground Mine
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:	Ar=12.000 m².
Guided tours:	nein. Audioguides per App.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	yes
Bibliography:
Address:	Deutsches Bergbau-Museum, Am Bergbaumuseum 28, 44791 Bochum, Tel: +49-234-5877-0, Fax: +49-234-5877-11. Besucherservice, Tel: +49-234-5877-126. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

01-APR-1930	German Mining Museum Bochum and Leibniz Research Museum for Georesources founded.
1935	representative new museum building based on designs by the renowned industrial architect Fritz Schupp approved.
1937	shaft sunk for the Anschauungsbergwerk replica mine.
1940	600 m long replica mine opened.
1943	museum closed due to the war.
1946	first small exhibition reopened.
1947	Vereinigung der Freunde von Kunst und Kultur im Bergbau e.V. (Association of Friends of Art and Culture in Mining) founded.
1948	mine replica reopened.
1953	additional building with 1,000 m² exhibition space opened.
1962	Hans Günter Conrad becomes museum director.
1969	Bergbau-Archiv Bochum (Bochum Mining Archive) founded.
1973	Double headframe of the disused "Germania" pit rebuilt at the museum.
01-MAR-1976	renamed Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum (German Mining Museum Bochum).
1977	Recognised as a research museum by the Bund-Länder Commission (BLK) and included in the research funding by the federal and state governments.
1986	South extension with 3,000 m² of exhibition space opened.
1987	replica mine extended to include a replica of an iron ore mine.
2003	modern shield longwall opened in the replica mine.
2019	permanent exhibition redesigned.

Description

The Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum (German Mining Museum) describes itself, quite rightly, as the most important mining museum in the world. Over three floors and 20 departments, visitors are given a comprehensive impression of the development of mining from its earliest beginnings. A museum in which you can easily spend a whole day. This is also a result of the museum's long history. As early as 1868, the Westfälische Berggewerkschaftskasse (WBK) founded an educational and display collection of mining utensils in Bochum. This was not a public museum, but illustrative material for the education of young miners. A public museum was also discussed, but there was a lack of funding. However, in 1927, the city of Bochum and the WBK commissioned the mining engineer Heinrich Winkelmann to create the museum. He redesigned the former Bochum cattle slaughterhouse, not a disused colliery as is often assumed. The museum was opened on 01-APR-1930 and Heinrich Winkelmann became the first museum director. In 1935, it was decided to build a prestigious new museum building based on designs by the renowned industrial architect Fritz Schupp. In 1937, a shaft was sunk for the so-called Anschauungsbergwerk (replica mine), a replica of a coal mine. Neither this mine nor the new museum building were finished when the museum was closed in 1943 due to the war. The building was severely damaged by Allied air raids, and the remaining museum staff converted the demonstration mine into an air raid shelter. It became the busiest shelter in Bochum, with between 580 and 760 people finding shelter from the air raids every day in 1945. Some parts of the tunnels were probably also used for the safe storage of the collections.

After the war, the museum was gradually reopened, expanded, and new buildings were constructed. A support association was also founded. However, the radical change in the museum's orientation took place under Hans Günter Conrad, who became museum director in 1962. Previously, it had been a historically orientated museum that preserved the history of local mining. Now, however, it became a research museum, a non-university research institute, and the Bochum Mining Archive was founded. This archive has 6.5 kilometres of shelves today and is now called the Montanhistorisches Dokumentationszentrum (Mining History Documentation Centre).

The spectacular landmark of the museum is the double headframe of the disused "Germania" pit. It was rebuilt here in 1973. A lift was installed to connect the exhibition mine, viewing platform and museum. The so-called Anschauungsbergwerk (replica mine) is an artificial mine with a 2.5 km long network of galleries, offering an insight into coal and iron mines that could never be gained in such abundance in real mines. And although you are aware of the fact that this mine is artificial, you soon get the impression that you are far underground in a real mine. It was originally opened in 1940 as a replica of a coal mine. The replica of an iron ore mine was opened in 1987. And in 2003, after 10 years of construction, a modern shield face was opened. There is also a Seilfahrtsimulator (mine elevator simulator), a replica of a mine lift.

Both the structure of the museum and the permanent exhibition were extensively reorganised from 2014 and reopened in their new form in 2019. The museum now offers four tours through the permanent exhibition with the themes of coal, mining, mineral resources and art. The museum also has a Forschungslabor (Research Laboratory) and the Montanhistorisches Dokumentationszentrum (Mining History Document Centre). There is also a museum shop and a restaurant called Kumpels (Miners).