Rhineland Regional Museum
(Rheinisches LandesMuseum)
Colmantstrasse 14-16
53115 Bonn
Germany

Architektengruppe Stuttgart 2003

The new building by Architektengruppe Stuttgart for Bonn's Rhineland Regional Museum is an appealing and rational variation on the 'glass box' theme. The building now makes up half of the museum, replacing the original building and smoothly joining onto a 1909 extension to the north.

From the outside front (south) facade, the dominant impression is of a warm, rich, timber box, pierced by large 'openings' with their timber cutouts set at a slight angle, all wrapped in a larger, glass box. 

The oblique timber cut-outs let modest, exhibit-friendly amounts of light from slit windows into the matching timber exhibition spaces within, while making the outside of the facade appear much more opening and welcoming than the limited windows might otherwise have suggested.

The 4m gap between the glass and wood skins is sufficient to house both a cafe and two originally exterior exhibits - a Roman arcade and a Gothic cross - that need protection from the weather but benefit from looking outside.

Simon Glynn 2004 (updated 2007)

How to visit

The museum is five minutes' walk from Bonn central train station. Leave the station from the south entrance, onto Quantiusstrasse, and turn right (the museum is already signposted at this point). Cross over the first crossing, bearing left into Colmantstrasse; the museum is shortly on your right.

The museum is closed on Mondays (hence the lack of interior pictures on this page). To check opening times and other visitor information, you can visit the museum's German-language web site, call +49 228 2070 0 or email rlmb@lvr.de. 

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