Museum Koenig, Natural history museum in Poppelsdorf, Bonn, Germany
The Museum Koenig is a natural history museum in the Poppelsdorf district of Bonn that houses exhibitions on global ecosystems and scientific research collections. The spaces spread across several floors with dioramas presenting animals in recreated habitats.
Alexander Koenig laid the foundation stone of the main building on 3 September 1912, to designs by Gustav Holland. The shell was confiscated in 1914 and used as a military hospital, then as barracks by British and French troops until 1926. Koenig donated the museum to the German Reich in 1929, and it opened on 13 May 1934. On 1 September 1948 the large hall hosted the ceremonial opening of the Parliamentary Council; the prepared giraffes were draped because they could not be removed.
The museum displays more than 300,000 animal specimens arranged in lifelike scenes, from rainforests to polar regions. Visitors can spot tropical species alongside desert dwellers and experience how each habitat connects with its wildlife.
The entrance hall sits at Adenauerallee 160 and is reachable from central Bonn in a few minutes. The building opens Tuesday to Sunday from 10 a.m., with Wednesday hours extending until 9 p.m.
The giraffes in the main hall were covered with cloths on 1 September 1948, when the Parliamentary Council's opening ceremony took place there; they could not be moved out of the way. The taxidermy mounts visible in the hall today stand beneath the glass roof.
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