This three-story natural history museum contains one of Europe’s largest collections of dinosaur fossils as well as specimens of animals and rocks.
Senckenberg Museum displays a wide collection of animals and plants, both living and extinct. See dinosaur skeletons, tall trees and glow-in-the-dark rocks across three floors of exhibitions.
The main highlight of the Senckenberg Museum, named after an 18th-century Frankfurt naturalist, is its vast collection of dinosaur artifacts. Come to see one of the most extensive collections of dinosaur fossils in Europe. Many of these are complete skeletons that have been carefully preserved by the museum.
Look for reconstructed skeletons of familiar dinosaurs like the horned triceratops, the spine-plated stegosaurus and the vicious tyrannosaurus. See other dinosaurs not popularly recognized, like the placodus. The Senckenberg Museum has the only complete skeleton of this aquatic reptile in the world. Don’t miss the fossilized dinosaur footprints outside in the museum’s Geopark.
Not all of the creatures that the Senckenberg Museum displays are extinct. Many displays are dedicated to the diversity of life in today’s world. Browse the “Giants and Dwarves” exhibition to see examples of the smallest and largest plants and animals. This includes photographs of the world’s tallest trees and one of the world’s smallest mammals, the 0.07-ounce (2-gram) Etruscan shrew.
Investigate the rocks and minerals exhibit to see some of the most dazzling colours that nature can provide. This includes fluorescent rocks that glow in the dark as well as a large collection of meteorites.
In addition to fossils, photographs and specimens, the Senckenberg contains many dioramas showing animals in a simulated natural habitat.
The museum is open every day of the week. There is an admission fee. For an additional fee, rent an audio guide in English that provides commentary on 50 of the museum’s specimens.
There are U-Bahn and tram stops within a 10-minute walk of the Senckenberg Museum. The nearest S-Bahn stop is a 15-minute walk away. There are no parking facilities at the museum, but there is a garage nearby on Siesmayerstrasse where you can pay to park.
