Ethnographic Museum of the University of Zurich, Ethnographic museum in downtown Zurich, Switzerland.
The Ethnographic Museum of the University of Zurich is a museum in downtown Zurich that occupies a historic building and displays collections from diverse world cultures. The exhibition spaces show objects from Africa, the Himalayan regions, China, India, Southeast Asia, Australia, and the Americas.
The museum was founded in 1889 and joined the University of Zurich in 1914, moving into its current building from 1864 in the old Botanical Garden. Since then, it has been gathering and preserving collections that document how people have lived in different parts of the world.
The collections show how people across the world have developed different ways of living and working, from daily tools to clothing and ceremonial objects. Walking through the galleries, you notice how creativity and practical thinking appear in every human culture.
Entry to the museum is free for everyone, and the building is located in a quiet green area of the city. Visiting on weekday mornings gives you more space to look around without crowds and to appreciate the objects on display.
Beyond the objects displayed in the exhibition halls, the institution maintains an extensive archive of historical photographs, films, and audio recordings from around the world. These materials capture everyday life as it was decades ago, offering insights into aspects of human experience that are rarely documented anywhere else.
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