The Geneva Museum of Ethnography (MEG) presents collections from five continents and exhibitions devoted to world cultures. Housed in a contemporary building in Plainpalais, it also explores colonial legacies and dialogue between cultures.
Ethnographic museums
Main highlights
- Over 75,000 objects from around a hundred civilisations across five continents
- Permanent exhibition “The Archives of Human Diversity” featuring over 1,000 objects
- Contemporary building by Marco Graber and Thomas Pulver, with a sloping diamond-patterned façade
Overview
The Geneva Museum of Ethnography, known as the MEG, is dedicated to ethnography. It opened in 1901 on the initiative of Professor Eugène Pittard, who also founded a chair of anthropology at the University of Geneva. The museum was first housed in the Villa Mon Repos before moving to its current building in 2014.
Its collections comprise over 75,000 objects and 200,000 books and documents, making them among the most important ethnographic collections in Switzerland. The museum places decolonisation, collaborative processes and sustainability at the heart of its approach.
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What to see and do
The permanent exhibition “The Archives of Human Diversity” brings together over 1,000 objects selected from the collections. It is divided into six sections : one for each continent and one devoted to the ethnomusicology collection. You journey through the world’s cultures, from one region to the next.
The collections also include iconographic, photographic, audiovisual and sound documents, spanning several centuries of history and more than a hundred cultures. Temporary exhibitions complement the permanent display.
Designed by architects Marco Graber and Thomas Pulver, the building is recognisable by its sloping façade clad in metal diamonds. It has become a landmark of the Plainpalais district.
Practical information
Getting there : from Genève-Cornavin station, take TPG bus 1, 2, 19 or 32, or TPG tram 12 or 15, to the “Musée d’ethnographie” stop.
Visit duration : at least two hours for the permanent exhibition and temporary spaces.
Audience : the exhibitions are suitable for adults and children alike.
Visiting tips
Start with the permanent exhibition for an overview of the five continents, then continue to the temporary spaces. Take time to admire the façade from the street before going in. This place is part of the selection Geneva, between lakes, mountains and cosmopolitanism.
Nearby attractions
- The Reformation Wall, in the Parc des Bastions, pays tribute to the great figures of the Protestant Reformation.
- The Patek Philippe Museum showcases over five centuries of watchmaking art in a restored Art Deco building.
- The Mamco Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art displays over 6,000 works in a former Geneva factory.
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