Bible Museum Münster, Bible museum in Münster, Germany
The Bible Museum Münster displays around 1500 biblical manuscripts, prints, and fragments, documenting the evolution of biblical texts from handwritten documents to modern editions. The collection spans different languages and time periods to trace how biblical texts spread and changed.
Kurt Aland founded the museum as a department of the Institute for New Testament Textual Research; it opened on 8 March 1979 in the presence of Federal President Walter Scheel, then the world's only Bible museum. Barbara Aland took over in 1986 and added three rooms; Holger Strutwolf followed in 2004. After moving to Pferdegasse in late 2006, it closed from 2014 to 2019 for rebuilding and a new presentation.
The collection displays Latin and German Bible translations, with focus on Luther's interpretation and how it shaped the German language. Visitors can observe how religious texts influenced language development.
The museum is centrally located in Münster and open Tuesday through Sunday with extended hours on select Friday evenings. Visitors should wear comfortable shoes as browsing the collection takes time and stairs connect the different exhibition levels.
The museum holds 22 Greek manuscripts from the Institute for New Testament Textual Research, including minuscules 676 and 2444 and lectionaries such as ℓ1681, digitised in the New Testament Virtual Manuscript Room. Since April 2010 it has also kept Walter Remy's private collection: 379 Latin, 200 Greek and 16 multilingual Bibles from the 16th to 18th centuries.
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