Delve into Heidelberg’s past at the Kurpfälzisches Museum. From Roman-era objects to artwork that spans five centuries, the museum’s exhibits highlight over 600,000 years of human settlement in the area. Kurpfälzisches Museum opened in 1879 with the private collection of French art historian Charles de Graimberg. The museum’s location is a resplendent Baroque palace called Palais Morass.
Exhibition rooms on the museum’s first floor are dedicated to regional archaeology. See a replica of the jawbone of a Homo heidelbergensis, which is a species of human from the Middle Pleistocene period. Browse Roman artifacts unearthed at Heiligenberg, a hill on the north bank of the Neckar River. A collection of ceramics, jewelry and weapons provide insight into life during the Merovingian age.
Also on the ground floor are exhibits that look into the evolution of Heidelberg. The collections cover topics such as the age of Romanticism, the German revolutions of 1848 and 1849 and the rise of socialism. Displayed in the palace cellar are gravestones and sculptures from the Middle Ages to the 1800s.
Art, with an emphasis on artists associated with the city, is the predominant feature of the upper floor galleries. The collection stores some 7,000 watercolors and 13,000 prints. Admire works by Friedrich Rottmann and his student Karl Philipp Fohr. Browse portraits of Palatinate royalty, including Karl Theodor, Frederick V and Princess Elizabeth Charlotte. Peek inside rooms decorated with 18th- and 19th-century Rococo furniture.
You’ll find the museum in Heidelberg City Centre, otherwise known as the Old Town. Public buses stop a short walk from the museum and Heidelberg train station is 1.6 miles (2.5 kilometers) to the west. The nearest parking, available for a fee, is at the Kongresshaus Stadthalle Heidelberg conference center.
Kurpfälzisches Museum is open from Tuesday to Sunday. There’s an admission fee, with daily discounts for students and seniors. Guided tours for visiting groups are available by prior arrangement. Check the museum’s official website for more information and for details of temporary exhibitions.
