Museum of Cultures, Ethnographic museum in Altstadt Grossbasel, Switzerland.

The Museum of Cultures holds over 320,000 objects and around 50,000 historical photographs from Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas and Oceania. Its collection includes a 16-metre-high Abelam cult house from Papua New Guinea. The museum occupies a neoclassical building by Melchior Berri on Münsterplatz, with a main entrance opened in 2008.

The museum traces its origin to 1844, when Basel received hundreds of ancient Mexican ceramics and statues collected by Lukas Vischer, forming one of Europe's first public ethnographic collections. In 1849 it moved into Melchior Berri's neoclassical building on the Münster hill, on the site of an Augustinian monastery. A separate ethnology department was created in 1904, and the collection became an independent institution in 1917. It was renamed Museum of Cultures in 1996.

The museum's name, adopted in 1996, marks a shift from presenting foreign cultures to fostering intercultural dialogue. Its thematic exhibitions tie objects to the present: a 1999 show examined Basel's Carnival, and a 2005 exhibition explored the city's religious diversity. A 16-metre-high Abelam cult house from Papua New Guinea stands in the collection.

The main entrance opened on Münsterplatz in 2008, separating the museum from the Natural History Museum in the same building. Objects come from Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas and Oceania, so pick a region or theme before setting out. The 16-metre Abelam cult house from Papua New Guinea is the largest single piece.

The museum actively conducts research expeditions and partners with source communities to document the history and context surrounding each object. This ongoing work means the collection continues to grow richer through connections with the people whose heritage is represented.