Zoological Museum Hamburg, Natural history museum in Hamburg, Germany
The Zoological Museum Hamburg is a natural history museum in the Eimsbüttel district, connected to the University of Hamburg. It holds scientific collections of animal specimens, skeletons, and preserved materials gathered from many parts of the world.
The museum's collection grew from scientific expeditions in the 19th century, when animal specimens were gathered to support university research and teaching. Over time it became one of the main zoological reference points in northern Germany.
The museum's collection began in 1843 with the Naturwissenschaftlicher Verein, a society of Hamburg citizens rather than aristocrats. A narwhal skull with two tusks, taken by whaling captain Dirk Petersen in 1684, is among the oldest exhibits. The walrus Antje, former NDR mascot, is also on display.
The zoological exhibition occupies 2,000 m² in Rotherbaum, in the same quarter as the University of Hamburg campus. The scientific collections, including the biobank kept at −20 °C and −80 °C, are not part of the public display. Allow time for the walrus Antje and the narwhal skull with two tusks.
The oldest specimen in the collection is the skull of a narwhal with two tusks, shot in 1684 by the whaling captain Dirk Petersen. The museum's roughly 10 million objects also include the walrus Antje, the former mascot of the broadcaster NDR.
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