Civic education in school
Within society, serving society
University treasure troves
Behind closed doors, yet right in the midst of things: Vice-President Bärbel Kracke on the value of scientific collections for research and teaching.
Vice-President for University Community and Engagement, Prof. Dr Bärbel Kracke, at the Phyletic Museum of the University of Jena
Image: Nicole Nerger (University of Jena)
Vice-President for University Community and Engagement, Prof. Dr Bärbel Kracke, at the Phyletic Museum with specimen preparer Mathias Krüger
Image: Nicole Nerger (University of Jena)Text: Ute Schönfelder
What is the difference between a scientific collection and a museum?
Bärbel Kracke: In a nutshell: Museums communicate primarily with the outside world, whereas scientific collections are used internally. A museum has a clear mandate to present exhibits and educate the public. A scientific collection is a research infrastructure that is used to derive knowledge. It ensures the long-term preservation of specimens and supports teaching through its research objects.
If we take a look at the scientific collections and museums at the University of Jena: what is it that distinguishes them?
What makes our museums and collections special is the breadth of disciplines they cover. These range from various natural science collections and those focused on the history of science and technology, to medical and anatomical collections, as well as archaeological and art-historical holdings. Their historical depth is another distinctive feature: many collections date back far into the past and are associated with prominent figures such as Goethe, Schiller and Haeckel.
What can scientific collections teach us that books or datasets cannot?
The objects within a collection constitute physical evidence: They contain far more information than a text, an image or a database entry. For instance, information regarding the physical properties of the objects, their restoration history, as well as traces and signs of manufacture or their use. Collections perform multiple significant roles simultaneously in education: They represent archives in which knowledge is preserved over the long-term. They are laboratories where new methods are continuously applied, allowing new insights to be gained—even from »old« objects. Collections are themselves places of teaching and learning; they often also serve to evoke memories and preserve cultural heritage—in any case, they are far more than mere »repositories«, but rather active spaces of knowledge.
Could you explain that in somewhat greater detail?
The Collegium Jenense is a good example. This is a place that has existed for centuries, where the university was founded, and whose holdings are of tremendous significance. Harnessing new analytical techniques, we can continually re-examine these items and gain new insights. Thanks to modern methods of material and DNA analysis, we can now, for example, determine what everyday life was like for people at the university in the 16th century. What people ate or how they dressed. And we do this using historical materials and objects. In a collection, these are effectively permanent subjects of research. Their significance evolves as scientific knowledge advances.
Many of the collections are not open to the general public. Why is this necessary, and how can the collections still be made visible?
As mentioned, the collections are workspaces in which research is carried out. In addition, there are many objects that need special protection for conservation reasons, that require specific climatic conditions or are sensitive to light. At the same time, however, the university also has an educational mandate and regularly presents its collections in exhibitions within the university or in museums such as the Jena City Museum. To this end, our university has an Exhibition Advisory Committee. This committee, comprising experts from the university’s collections, decides whether an exhibition should take place on university premises.
Another way to reach the public is via the collections portal. What role does the digitization of the collection holdings play?
Digitization is a tremendous asset. It expands the possibilities when working with research objects: Collections can be searched globally, and the increased visibility promotes interdisciplinary research and much more. This is also a significant benefit in terms of the university’s social and educational mandate: For example, school groups can use our portal to prepare for a visit to the collections or the museum. Our »Object of the Month« is also designed to raise public awareness
Digitized versions cannot replace the direct experience of handling collection items.
Bärbel Kracke
Are there limits to digitization?
Yes. Digitized versions cannot replace the direct experience of handling collection items. And the data obtained through digitization is only as good as the manner in which it is organized: how easily it can be accessed, how is it contextualised and so on. Moreover, collections cannot usually be digitized in their entirety; this is always a question of resource availability.
What do students learn when interacting with an object first-hand that differs from what they learn in a lecture theatre or from a textbook?
They learn to observe, to describe and to document. Students can also learn how to make collection items accessible and, for example, how to present them effectively in exhibitions. This is not just about the objects themselves, but also about their context, for instance when they originate from colonial acquisitions. There are a number of such items in the university’s academic collections and museums.
Does the long history of maintaining these collections bring with it a sense of responsibility?
There are historical burdens borne by our collections, such as the Anatomical Collection or the Phyletic Museum. In this context, it is our responsibility to conduct systematic provenance research and ensure transparency regarding the contexts of the objects. In some cases, repatriations have taken place, for instance in 2022 when human remains originating from Hawaii, formerly in the possession of Ernst Haeckel, were returned to their homeland and buried there. Today, we are pursuing an approach to collecting and exhibiting that makes an active stand against discrimination and racism.
Finally, looking ahead to the future, what are your personal aspirations when it comes to the university’s collections and museums?
What I would really like to see is a showcase for the collections, in which each collection is represented by a single object. I would like visitors to be able to view our »treasure troves« either at a glance or in their entirety. Another important point is that we need to be better prepared for emergencies endangering the collections. For example, water damage or fires. After all, our treasures are unique and cannot be replaced if damaged.
Profile of a collection: Treasures of evolution
At the Phyletic Museum of the University of Jena de, skeletons, fossils and other specimens illustrate how biodiversity has developed through evolution. The research collection in the storage facilities behind the exhibition comprises more than one million objects.
The museum was founded in 1907 by Ernst Haeckel. It is housed in a striking Art Nouveau building and forms part of the Institute of Zoology and Evolutionary Research. The »Medusa Room« is adorned with ceiling frescoes depicting corals, sea anemones and jellyfish. Other rooms that make up the permanent exhibition include the »Evolution Hall« as well as rooms dedicated to the phylogenetic development of multicellular animals and the »origins of humankind«. Also on display is the fossilized skeleton of an aurochs, which Goethe himself once studied.
The history of the collections is far older than the museum itself, dating back to the year 1700. The collection holds more than 800,000 insects, primarily butterflies and beetles from Central Europe. A large vertebrate collection, comprising skeletons and stuffed specimens, also includes more than 100 Thuringian wildcats, which are the subject of research at the museum. The collection of more than 2,000 ethanol-filled jars containing wet specimens is another great treasure, including a wealth of material collected by Haeckel.
