Cabinet of Curiosities — The display collection

Our scientific collections consist of 6.5 million objects – they are the heart of the museum. They are stored in our cellar in climate-controlled and bomb-proof rooms. Although these precious treasures are well protected, they’re also inaccessible to the museum guests. The permanent exhibition  «Cabinet of Curiosities – The display collection» brings part of the «wet collection» into the light of day and shows its unbelievable breadth. Over 15,000 jars stand on ceiling-high shelves. They contain 19,000 objects, including iguanas, fish, crocodiles, penguins and insects, not to mention a unique collection of eyes. This exhibition is unique in Switzerland. The Cabinet of Curiosities attracts visitors with its whimsical aesthetic and captivates them with its diversity. It is a natural history collection, research site, archive of life, and not least – a testament to the most pressing issues of our time.

«Pickled animals» – what are they for?

Species extinction, habitat loss and climate change are the driving topics of our time. But it’s impossible to engage with them scientifically without natural history collections. These collections alone provide the necessary foundation for answers, evidence and research. They allow us to observe the development of species diversity over time and furnish the only evidence of the existence of extinct animal species. Accurate knowledge of changes in biodiversity – the diversity of life – is indispensable to protecting it. We can only protect what we understand.

Research lab in the exhibition

The preserved specimens in the Cabinet of Curiosities are not only exhibits, but also important research objects. They form a foundation for many research questions, such as changes in biodiversity, identification of new species, and effects of climate change on ecosystems. To answer questions like these, objects are used to build tissue sample collections and perform DNA analyses. In the Cabinet of Curiosities, two glass windows allow a view into a laboratory where researchers isolate DNA from tissue samples – live! 

The art of preservation

Death is an inexorable part of life and brings with it the disintegration and decay of organisms. This makes preserving the objects a special challenge, since it is precisely this natural process that must be stopped – and that for several hundred years. Preservation in fluids like alcohol may protect the body and DNA, but dulls the colours of skin, hair, and scales and makes the specimens look unsightly. Formalin, on the other hand, preserves the colours of skin, hair, and scales, but the fluid is highly toxic and destroys the DNA. Today, however, modern methods of preservation enable the protection of as many characteristics of the organism as possible. Proper preservation of natural history collections is also a service to future generations, since the information retained may be able to answer questions in the future that we haven’t even thought of today. 

A unique world of Swiss fish

A natural history collection is never complete. Our Cabinet of Curiosities, too, is always changing: newly collected objects are added; others migrate to the lab for a while or are loaned to other museums for purposes of research or exhibitions. The fish section of the Cabinet of Curiosities is an active research collection of this kind. The last ice age formed the Swiss landscape as we know it today. The lakes created at that time are unique ecosystems, yet surprisingly little is known about the world of Swiss fish. Historical collections and current research document this extraordinary diversity at different points in time. Thanks to this interplay, we can study changes in this diversity – an indispensable tool for protecting it.