The Neanderthal Museum is located at the legendary site where the Neanderthal who gave his species its name was found in 1856.
Since 1996, this special place with its world-famous find is an occasion to reflect on human evolution. However, it does not remain in the past, but keeps up with the times and always finds new ways to inspire the approximately 145,000 visitors a year for the Stone Age.
The team of the Neanderthal Museum makes a great contribution to cultural education with contemporary educational formats such as dialogue-based guided tours -analogue or online- and exciting workshops.
The Höhlenblick Tower
Since December 2022, guests of the Neanderthal Museum can marvel at a new highlight: the Höhlenblick Tower. The 22-metre-high tower can be accessed barrier-free through alternating inner and outer ramps over 360 metres.
The tower's landmark is the skull-shaped dome above the upper platform. A 20-metre-high climbing tunnel is a welcome shortcut on the way up - as long as your legs don't get wobbly. You can balance safely on the thick rope and the net provides additional support.
The Museum
The museum lies in the centre of the Neandertal World of Discovery and sees itself as a destination for excursions, as a place to experience and learn, as a conference location and as a documentation and research centre on the Neanderthal and early human history.
The exhibition tells the story of humankind from its beginnings four million years ago to the present day. Beyond the elements of the classic museum presentation (exhibit, image and reading text), the Neanderthal Museum as an adventure museum tells visitors the story of their human development through atmospheric staging and audio experiences.
The exhibition was revised and reopened in 2006, 2016 and 2021. Individual sections of the permanent exhibition are updated promptly as new research findings come to light, so that visitors can always be presented with the current state of knowledge on human evolution. By addressing current topics such as climate change, migration and encounters between people of different origins, the social relevance of research on our past for today's time and society becomes clear again and again.
Site and Höhlenblick Tower
The Höhlenblick Tower adds an exciting experience to the excursion into Neandertal. At last, visitors can climb the lost gorge and stand at the top where the Neanderthal's cave once was. From here you can look down on the opposite side of the valley, just as the Neanderthal once did from the lost Feldhofer Grotte cave.
The 16 bones of the Neanderthal are presented as a tactile exhibit in the centre of the uppermost platform. A QR code triggers a 360-degree video of the Feldhofer Grotte cave. "Telescopes" on the edge of the upper platform enable a great augmented reality experience journey that takes you back to the time of the Neanderthals.
Stone Age Workshop
The Stone Age Workshop, the former museum building, houses rooms for the museum's educational workshops. Here visitors can try out Stone Age techniques, test their skills with self-made prehistoric hunting weapons and learn how to make a fire. With its anthropological workshops, the extracurricular place of learning offers a welcome change for school classes and other groups.
The Stone Age Workshop also offers national and international scientists modern, well-equipped workplaces where they can conduct their research on the Neanderthal.
Ice Age Animal Park and Stone Age Playground
The Ice Age Animal Park is worth a wonderful walk, not only for the museum's youngest guests. Wild horses, bison and aurochs, which were part of the Neanderthal hunt and are kept in a species-appropriate manner in the Neandertal, can be observed in large outdoor enclosures. The Ice Age Animal Park was founded and is maintained by the Neandertal Nature Conservation Association.
Directly opposite the museum is Europe's largest Stone Age playground. Spread across 2,250 m² is an exciting adventure-discovery landscape, with a variety of opportunities to climb and play. Particular highlights are the nine-metre high climbing tower with its tunnel slide and the "driftwood landscape". A picnic in the parkland is the perfect accompaniment to a visit to the playground.
Art Trail “Human Traces”
The Art Trail "Human Traces“ leads along the Düssel on a romantic circular path for almost 200 metres. The various works of art encourage self-reflection on human nature and are thus intended to lead to a new way of looking at nature. The stories of the ten internationally renowned artists can be listened to at audio stations along the trail.
Address
Neanderthal Museum
Talstraße 300
40822 Mettmann
Germany
Hours & Admission
For opening hours and admission prices, please see the museum website.
Accessibility
The exhibition and the Höhlenblick Tower is fully accessible for people with a disability. An elevator is available in the museum. Signposted disabled parking spaces can be found directly in front of the museum. A floor guidance system, tactile objects and an app for the blind and people with visual impairments is installed in the permanent exhibition.
Workshops for adults offer to learn Stone Age techniques. © Neanderthal Museum
Groups and school classes can book guided tours. © Neanderthal Museum
Children can have Stone Age birthday parties with their friends. © Neanderthal Museum
School pupils attending the workshop „Human fossils“. © Neanderthal Museum
Programmes and Activities
The Neanderthal Museum offers programmes for all ages and for different occasions. School classes are welcome for guided tours and workshops, as are private groups. Adults and children can learn Stone Age techniques in various workshops. In addition to workshops, there are also various birthday programmes for children. Guided tours and a varied accompanying programme are available to coincide with the changing special exhibitions. Holiday programmes and all-day holiday care round off the offer.
Information and booking: buchung@neanderthal.de
The Neanderthal Museum is located in the heart of the neanderland. The neanderland begins right outside the gates of the large metropolises on the Rhine and Ruhr and extends far into the Bergisches Land. The tourism region around the ten towns of the district of Mettmann, each with its own special features and offers, stands for adventure, culture, tradition and beautiful nature.
