Collection presentation

Leaps in Time – A Brief History of Basel

The exhibition Leaps in Time will provide a brief history of Basel from the earliest signs of human activity there to the present. Visitors will be piloted through 100,000 years of history by some hundred exhibits, including key evidence of some of the great milestones of the past.

Around 200,000 people of 200 different nationalities live in Basel today. The city forms the centre of a large trinational region with a long history. «Leaps in Time» presents all those major events and historical milestones that have shaped the city and the region. Visitors will be piloted through time by a hundred or so exhibits ranging from the earliest traces of human activity to the present.

Among them will be important items attesting to key events in the city’s history, although visitors will also encounter objects of everyday use, including some that may surprise them. In addition, there will be six short films that open up historical perspectives on contemporary issues such as the influence of immigration and migration, the role of the pharmaceutical industry, and the relationship between town and country. There are also media stations that invite visitors to discover and solve riddles, as well as a large, interactive installation combining city maps, historical photographs, facts and figures on Basel’s urban and demographic development. The exhibition is trilingual (German, French, English) throughout and provides full access for the disabled.

EXTENSION OF THE EXHIBITION

Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Basel

The «Zeitsprünge» exhibition at the Barfüsserkirche has taken another leap in time. In May 2025, Basel was transformed into a European music metropolis, with over half a million people celebrating the world's biggest music competition. Meanwhile, 700 volunteers worked 6,500 shifts, and 36,000 fans watched the final at St. Jakob Park, making it the largest public viewing event in ESC history.

Through the ESC Memory Box project, we have collected memories and personal stories from fans, volunteers, and artists in order to preserve this exceptional event for future generations.

We are displaying three items from the box: a volunteer's hat; the rhinestone-encrusted boots of ESC fan Lydia; and an arrangement of the winning song, «The Code», performed by the Basler Beizenchor. These items represent the creativity, enthusiasm and community spirit that characterised the ESC 2025.

During the event, the Basel Historical Museum collected 85 objects and 125 video messages. Sixteen mementos were added to the collection, including these three items.

Extension of the exhibition

50 years of women's suffrage

Parade for women's suffrage at Schweizerische Ausstellung für Frauenarbeit 1928 in Bern. Photo: Otto Rohr, Gosteli-Stiftung, Fotosammlung B 78

50 years ago, on 7 February 1971, a majority of Swiss men finally voted in favour of women's suffrage. Switzerland was one of the last countries in Europe to grant women political participation. It was preceded by an arduous, almost 100-year struggle.

To mark the anniversary, a new short film on the topic of «Equal Rights» has been supplemented to the exhibition «Leaps in Time – A Brief History of Basel».

Basel Historical Museum

Publication

Leaps in Time

Basel 1933–1945

Some 200,000 people from 200 nations live in Basel in theearly 2020s. The city is the centre of a large tri-national region. Yet how did Basel become what it is today? This publication in German or English offers a concise overview of the events and developments that have shaped the city and the region.

The publication was printed with the support of the Berta Hess-Cohn Stiftung, Basel

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A report by Stadt.Geschichte.Basel

Making Of

Collection presentation in the Barfüsserkirche

Opening times – Admission

Completely trilingual (German, French, English) and wheelchair accessible