Logo of Basel Historical Museum
Dunkle AnsichtHelle Ansicht
DE
EN
FR
Haus zum Kirschgarten: Outside view
Basel Historical Museum

HAUS ZUM KIRSCHGARTEN

 

All opening hours and prices

Haus zum Kirschgarten: View of the Cabinet of Miniatures
Basel Historical Museum

HAUS ZUM KIRSCHGARTEN

 

All opening hours and prices

Haus zum Kirschgarten: View of the Grey Room
Basel Historical Museum

HAUS ZUM KIRSCHGARTEN

 

All opening hours and prices

Haus zum Kirschgarten was built for the silk ribbon manufacturer and army colonel Johann Rudolf Burckhardt between 1775 and 1780.

The architect Johann Ulrich Büchel designed a mansion worthy of his client's wealth and status which is also a tour de force of early Neoclassical style, influenced in part by Masonic concepts. The mansion has been a museum of domestic culture since 1951. Most of the interior is devoted to 18th- and 19th-century period rooms formerly inhabited by Basel’s affluent bourgeoisie. But the museum also houses several special collections and hosts mini-exhibitions, such as that on Sheikh Ibrahim.

History of the Haus zum Kirschgarten

Newsletter – Sign up now!

In our monthly newsletter, you can find out everything about our three museums as well as exciting background information. Sign up now!

Kirschenjagd im Stadtpalais

Entdecken Sie das Haus zum Kirschgarten auf eigene Faust! Kinder können dem frechen Papagei Joru helfen, Kirschen zu suchen.

Wild Boar and Lettuce – Strasbourg Faiences and Dining Culture

They are among the great treasures of ceramic art: the works from the Strasbourg faience factory of the Hannong family.

Opening hours

 

Special opening hours:

Advent season
December 2, 2025
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Advent season
December 9, 2025
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Advent season
December 16, 2025
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Advent season
December 23, 2025
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Christmas Eve
December 24, 2025
Wednesday: closed

Christmas Day
December 25, 2025
Thursday: closed

Boxing Day
December 26, 2025
Friday: open

New Year's Eve
December 31, 2025
Wednesday: open

New Year's Day
January 1, 2026
Thursday: open

Fasnacht Monday
February 23, 2026
Monday: closed

Fasnacht Tuesday
February 24, 2026
Tuesday: closed

Fasnacht Wednesday
February 25, 2026
Wednesday: closed

Maundy Thursday
April 2, 2026
Thursday: open

Good Friday
April 3, 2026
Friday: open

Easter Sunday
April 5, 2026
Sunday: open

Easter Monday
April 6, 2026
Monday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Labour Day
May 1, 2026
Friday: closed

Ascension Day
May 14, 2026
Thursday: open

Whit Sunday
June 24, 2026
Wednesday: open

Whit Monday
June 25, 2026
Thursday: open

Swiss National Day
August 1, 2026
Saturday: open

Advent season
December 1, 2026
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Advent season
December 8, 2026
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Advent season
December 15, 2026
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Advent season
December 22, 2026
Tuesday: 11 AM to 5 PM

Christmas Eve
December 24, 2026
Thursday: closed

Christmas Day
December 25, 2026
Friday: closed

Boxing Day
December 26, 2026
Saturday: open

New Year's Eve
December 31, 2026
Thursday: open

New Year's Day
January 1, 2027
Friday: open

More dates
Less dates

Admission

1 Admission – 3 Museums – 7 Days

With one admission, you can visit the Barfüsserkirche, the Haus zum Kirschgarten and the Music Museum for seven days.

CHF 18.– / CHF 12.– *

* The reduced price applies to persons under 18 years of age (with ID) and/or in education up to 30 years of age (with ID), KulturLegi, artists with ID (IAA / aiap-ID / Unesco-ID), Pro Helvetia employees with ID, IV beneficiaries including one supporting companion.

Groups of 10 persons or more

CHF 12.– per person

Free admission

  • Happy Day and Happy Hour (without temporary exhibition at Barfüsserkirche)
  • Children under 13 years of age
  • Members of the Association for the Basel Historical Museum
  • Members of ICOM/VMS
  • Holders of the Museums-PASS-Musées, the Swiss Museum Pass or Colourkey
  • Students of the University of Basel and the FHNW
  • Refugees and asylum seekers with a B permit with refugee status F, N or S
  • Teachers for lesson preparation / students for project work

Happy Day: 1st Sunday of the month (excluding public holidays) *
Happy Hour: Last hour (excluding Sundays and public holidays) *

* This does not apply to the temporary exhibition in the Barfüsserkirche. The normal admission price is charged here.

Events

The public events programme is included in the admission price.

A supplement may be charged for special events. This is indicated in our programme.

Location and directions

History of the Haus zum Kirschgarten

Haus zum Kirschgarten built between 1775 and 1780 marks the apogee of secular Louis-Seize architecture on the Upper Rhine. It is surprisingly ambitious for a merchant’s private house. The finely worked sandstone façade with its triaxial portico, the coach entrance with its paired columns, and the spacious hallway are among the most striking features of the building. Johann Rudolf Burckhardt-de-Bary, silk manufacturer and son-in-law of the mayor of Basel, was only 25 when he commissioned his new palace. The contract went to Ulrich Büchel-Fatio of Basel, an architect even younger than his client who was very interested in the latest architectural trends. Burckhardt was obliged to sell his fine new palace as early as 1797, after which it changed hands several times. Thus, by the time it became a museum (the decision was made in 1933, although the museum did not actually open until 1951) most of the original furnishings as well as the original room structure had been lost.

The building as it is today consequently gives us no more than a fragmentary impression of the palace’s erstwhile interior. The suite of stuccoed hallway, vestibule, and salon has been preserved, as has the first floor library and three rooms on the third floor. The latter comprise the green Panelled Room, the Burckhardt Bedroom, and the Rose Boudoir dating from 1780. Yet none of these rooms contain their original furnishings, which unfortunately were never documented.

The exhibition concept builds on that of Basel’s first museum of domestic life at the Segerhof. That merchant’s residence, which Miss Marie Burckhardt made over to the city – complete with contents – in 1923, was demolished in 1934. The interiors were not lost, however, and since the furnishings of the guest room, dining room, Grey Hall, and kitchen were well documented and typical of those belonging to a well-to-do Basel family, they were transferred either in part or in their entirety to the Haus zum Kirschgarten (all on the second floor).

 
Contact

Management & administration
PO box | Steinenberg 4
CH-4001 Basel

Office opening hours
8:30 – 12 AM | 13:30 – 17 PM
Reception: +41 61 205 86 00
historisches.museum(at)bs.ch

Sign up for our newsletter
Logo: FacebookLogo: InstagramLogo: XLogo: YouTubeLogo: TripAdvisor
Closed today
Closed today
Closed today
Tuesday to Sunday 10 AM to 5 PM
Wednesday to Sunday 11 AM to 5 PM
Wednesday to Sunday 11 AM to 5 PM