Historical Museum, History museum in Lucerne, Switzerland
The Historical Museum occupies a former arsenal building and displays artifacts that tell the story of the region over many centuries. The collection includes archaeological finds, medieval objects, and documents spanning different periods and aspects of life in central Switzerland.
The museum opened in its Pfistergasse arsenal on 23 May 1986, after three years of conversion; the building itself was erected in 1567/1568 and served as the city and canton arsenal until 1983. Plans for a historical museum date to the 18th century, and from 1873 the city council made the Kornhalle of the old town hall available for exhibitions. In 2022 the parliament approved merging it with the adjacent Natural History Museum.
The collection reveals how people in this region lived across different periods through their everyday objects and belongings. You can see how crafts, dress, and daily routines evolved over time in central Switzerland.
The museum is located in the city center and is easy to reach on foot. Guided tours are offered in multiple languages, and different sections focus on specific time periods, making it simple for visitors to navigate based on their interests.
The collection holds Class A status in the Swiss cultural property registry, placing it among a select few institutions of national heritage importance. This distinction shows how valuable the objects are for understanding Swiss history.
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