Geneva Museum of Art and History

The Museum of Art and History

The Geneva audio-guided tour presents you with the Museum of Art and History, one of the largest museums in Switzerland, for an immersion in art through the centuries.

A treasure of Geneva fine arts

Inaugurated in 1910, the Museum of Art and History was built especially to house its collections. In a style both Beaux-Arts and neoclassical, it extends over more than seven thousand square metres and preserves one of the main fine arts collections of the country, as well as one of the most important collections of drawings and prints in Europe. Paintings, sculptures, archaeological objects and an art library are spread over five floors, gathering a considerable number of works that retrace the evolution of art over time. On its façade, one notices a singular digital clock, the Big Crunch Clock, created in 1999: it counts the time that would remain before the end of the Sun, in billions of years, recalling with poetry that nothing is quite eternal.

What there is to see

The Museum of Art and History deploys paintings, sculptures and archaeological collections over five floors, in an elegant neoclassical building. One follows there the evolution of art through the centuries, from fine arts to prints. It is a major stage for art lovers, in the heart of Geneva, with as a bonus the astonishing Big Crunch Clock on its façade.

Practical information

The Museum of Art and History is in the heart of the old town of Geneva. It can be visited according to hours to be checked on site; access to the permanent collections is generally free.

When was the Museum of Art and History inaugurated?

In 1910; the building was built especially to house its vast collections of fine arts and archaeology.

What is the Big Crunch Clock?

A digital clock installed on the façade in 1999, which symbolically counts down the time remaining before the end of the Sun.