Facade of Natural History Museum

C P Snow famously wrote about what he called the ‘Two Cultures’, one of science and another of the arts, which he saw as being locked in mutual incomprehension leading to conflict.  In Vienna, they stand face to face across an elegant square of lawns, statuary, fountains and topiary.  In twin, almost identical, magnificent buildings the Natural History Museum squares off to the History of Fine Art.

Statue of Maria-Theresa and Various Notables, Halfway Across the Elegant Square Between Science and Art

Interesting then, that one of the most important and rare artefacts in all of human history resides not among the Rubens and Rembrandts in the Kunsthistoriches Museum, but instead (for now) shares a hall with the spectacularly beautiful mineral collection in the Naturhistorisches Museum.

I am referring to the ‘Venus of Willendorf’, a strangely evocative yet enigmatic sculpture of a woman, dated to between 28,000 and 25,000 years BCE.  It was discovered near Krems, about 40km up the Danube from Vienna, so as I later wander around, up and down the Danube valley, I imagine the people who once inhabited this landscape. Here, surely, is one of the earliest and rarest pieces of art in existence. It’s hard to doubt that it is ‘art’, however the Second Culture (the arts) may argue definitions.  And yet it is perhaps fitting that the Venus (the collective name for such Stone Age female figures) resides among the collections devoted to facts and knowledge, rather than with those whose subjects are looking back towards a mythical past.

The Enigmatic Venus of Willendorf – Over 25,000 Years Old

It’s the Natural History Museum that attracts the Scientific Tourist first, of course.  Not only is this a world-class collection (and scientific institution), but the displays also include many items of local interest, thereby placing specimens in context.  The Venus is just one example of the items, anthropological and mineral, relating to the area.

Normally, I like to pace myself in a large museum like this; too long spent in the first exhibition halls means running out of time or stamina before reaching the end.  Here though, I’d suggest feeling free to loiter on the first (mezzanine, Hochparterre in German) floor.  The upper floor is almost entirely devoted to stuffed, or otherwise preserved, animals. Fascinating enough, but there’s little that you can’t see elsewhere, apart from the excellent sections devoted to microscopic life.

Impressive Lobby

Enjoy the entrance lobby, which is about as grand as it could be. Take a moment to look up from the centre of the hall, all the way up through the next floor to the dome high above.

The Impressive Dome (60m high)

Pick up an audio guide and some leaflets. There’s a list of 100 Highlights; pointing out a selection of the most interesting, spectacular or just plain amazing exhibits, that are well worth looking out for as you make your way around.

Then take the right-hand stairway to the mineral, rock and gemstone collection, with many fine and spectacular specimens.  The variety and beauty of minerals astounds the eye with breathtaking colours and wonderful forms.  Alas, it’s hard to get a good photo of these because of the lighting and glass cases.  A couple of rather dull-looking lumps of rock turn out to be among the most significant (at least from my point of view) because they are columns from deep-ocean vents (so-called ‘Black Smokers’) and it’s at these vents that not only does life thrive today in the abyssal darkness, but it is speculated that life itself may have evolved from extremophile organisms feeding on the mineral-rich and boiling hot water gushing from deep in the Earth’s mantle.

A Black Smoker – Life may have originated in mineral-rich thermal vents like these, deep on the ocean floor

The next section is the Meteorite Collection, the largest display in the world.  Among the exhibits are samples of moon rock brought back by Apollo astronauts, as well as bits of lunar and Martian rock that arrived here by natural means.  You’d have to be entirely without imagination not to be fascinated by these chunks of rock from the distant beginnings of the solar system, which have travelled from further away than any human has ever ventured.

From the mineral kingdom, we move into the beginnings of life on Earth.  This section seems to me to be particularly well laid out and explained.  You could hardly do better for a history of life on Earth for young people, than this exhibition, with plenty of spectacular models and examples.  From stromatolites through the mysterious Ediacaran fauna, the development of life is illustrated with fossils and models.  Look out for specimens of Hallucigenia, Waptia and Anomalocaris from the Burgess Shales; tiny and easily overlooked, the importance of these fossils cannot be overstated.  Naturally, the younger and less knowledgeable might want to skip over the early stages in their hurry to get to the dinosaurs and other megafauna, but the reconstruction of a Carboniferous forest shouldn’t be overlooked.

Up close and personal with this monster

Next come dinosaurs, including all the big, spectacular ones, and then, the birds, marsupials and mammals.  There’s animatronics for the kids, but even the most blasé adult cannot fail to be impressed by the sheer size and alien appearance of the specimens and models.

A pair of corridors link the two wings of the museum. Some of this space is dedicated to school parties, but an exhibition on climate enlivens the rest. Particularly horrifying, especially to locals, are the ‘before and after’ photos showing how the glaciers have retreated.

Over on the other wing, we have some excellent exhibitions dedicated to anthropology and evolution. Apparently, the previous exhibitions in this section were considered a little too racially biased for modern sensibilities, but the replacements seemed excellent to me.  The densely branched family tree of humans is well illustrated, and there are clear and cogent displays on the development of the brain and early cultures.  Some of the interactive displays are perhaps a little more entertainment than exposition.  For example, a display where you can ‘walk’ alongside an early human family, and another where you can morph your face to that of various hominids. But these are probably a boon to anyone dragging uninterested kids around.

The museum’s planetarium comes next.  Unfortunately, I missed the show on both visits, so I can’t really comment.

After the anthropology section, it’s time to move upstairs to the ‘stuffed animals’ floor.  Lots of animals, including favourites like the big cats and whales. For me, and perhaps it is just me my personal predilection, I was feeling tired by this point and a little numb, so I only gave these exhibits a cursory visit.  There’s little (I thought) that can’t be seen in any major natural history collection and, when time and energy are limited, I decided that revelling in the beauty of the animal world could wait for another day. Later reading shows I probably missed some interesting exhibits from the museum’s large insect collection, and interactive displays about microorganisms.  Oh well, I’ll just have to go back soon. 😉

Update:

The Scientific Tourist had a chance to re-visit the museum recently, and was again impressed by the place.  I had the time to visit galleries I’d rushed through last time.  Even better, the new galleries and exhibitions made a return visit well worthwhile.

But sticking with the old for a moment, I was pleased to see the magnificent collection of minerals remains untouched in its slightly retro display cabinets – so reminiscent of museums in my childhood.  And the collection of stuffed animals is more exciting than it sounds, with some wonderful examples such as the fearful exhibits of crocodiles.

Also worth visiting is the itchy microfauna exhibit – this probably is best seen after lunch.  The interactive displays of the little nasties that can parasitize us are worrying – it can leave you with a persistent little mind-worm of its own.

The Human Evolution section has been moved, but otherwise seemed unchanged, but this has probably been improved by now.   The much-improved prehistory section is well worth devoting some time to, focussing as it does, on fairly local history, including the world’s oldest salt mine.

But it’s the new displays that I wanted to visit, and the highlight must be the new setting for the 29,500- year-old Venus of Willendorf, and the 36,000-year-old Venus of Galgenberg ( named Fanny, after a 19th Century ballerina, as the figure appears to some to be dancing.)  Located in the Geology Halls last time I was there she seemed an afterthought, squeezed anomalously into the section, but now she occupies centre stage in her own little room.  She’s very well lit, and an animation shows the Ice Age environment of the area when these 2 figures were created.

Practical

The museum website (http://www.nhm-wien.ac.at/) has all the details, in English.  The site is pretty useful and informative about special exhibitions.  Alas, some of the English links from the floor plan to the collection descriptions don’t work, but that’s not a great loss.

It’s worth checking out when the planetarium shows are running, especially as the English language versions are much less frequent than the German ones. It’s worth noting that, bizarrely, the museum is closed all day on Tuesdays.  The Kunsthistoriches Museum, on the other hand, is closed on Mondays, so you need to plan ahead if you want to see both on the same day.  If you do, there’s an excellent value deli and grocery shop on the South-Eastern corner of the block, just by the Museumquartier Unterbahn station, to buy takeaway coffee, sandwiches, salads etc. for a refreshing break in the square.