Whole ecosystems
Savannah, rainforest, polar region and desert, walked between.
Simbel — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Eckhard Henkel — CC BY-SA 3.0 de · Ursula Jünger — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ziko van Dijk — CC BY-SA 4.0
The constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany, drafted in 1948-1949 and adopted in May 1949. It was deliberately called a Basic Law rather than a constitution to stress that it was provisional until Germany was reunified. Its first article states that human dignity shall be inviolable — wording that was a direct answer to what had preceded it. After reunification in 1990 it was kept as it was rather than replaced with a new constitution.
With children, this one first — the habitat scenes work excellently with them. Alone or with adults interested in history, the House of History is stronger, broader and free. The two are within walking distance and combine into one comfortable day.
Sign in to write your review of this place.
No reviews yet — be the first.
A museum of natural history and biodiversity research in Bonn, founded by the zoologist Alexander Koenig and opened in 1934. What distinguishes its display is that it does not line animals up in cases but rebuilds whole ecosystems: an African savannah with its trees and animals, a rainforest, a polar region, a desert — the visitor walks between them as though moving between climates. The approach was advanced when introduced and remains effective. The building carries an unexpected political importance: in September 1948 the Parliamentary Council that drafted Germany's Basic Law met here, because the museum was among the few large intact buildings in Bonn after the war. The mounted animals were temporarily removed and a giraffe was covered with a curtain. A plaque in the building records it. That makes the visit a double one: an excellent natural history museum for children, and the place where the constitution of federal Germany was born. The site is on the Museum Mile within walking distance of the House of History.
Savannah, rainforest, polar region and desert, walked between.
Covered during the 1948 constitutional drafting sessions — the story is documented.
The display is visual and built on scenes rather than text.
Museum Mile, Bonn