Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
A view of Brașov’s Old Town.
Romania • 12 days, 11 nights
Legends of Romania: Castles, Ruins & Culinary Delights
from
Balkans road trip
Bosnia and Herzegovina • 9 days, 8 nights
Balkans Road Trip: Serbia, Croatia & Bosnia and Herzegovina
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
The ‘Old Secretariat’ government building in New Delhi.
The 'Old Secretariat'
This set is inspired by a Roman arena.
Bozdağ Film Platolari
The Sea Water Distilling Plant.
Sea Water Distilling Plant
Contemplative paths.
Ayo Rock Formations
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Names on the bartop.
The Dive
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Wortley built the wooden backpack she used while retracing Alexandra David-Néel’s journey from a chair she found on the street in London.
How Elise Wortley Climbed Mont Blanc in 1830s Women’s Attire
29 days ago
Simplicity is key: Just a slice of bread with a sprinkling of salt and pepper is the perfect accompaniment.
The Sweet Second Life of Creole Cream Cheese
29 days ago
My rendition of frog legs, popping mushroom curry, pad prik khing with salted egg yolk, and sweet khanom thuai.
Recreating My Favorite Meal From Thailand
29 days ago
Inside London’s Gorgeously Curated ‘Art Restaurants’
29 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Germany Darmstadt Museum Jagdschloss Kranichstein

Museum Jagdschloss Kranichstein

This baroque palace displays an impressive collection of taxidermy, art, and rare objects from the days of courtly hunting.

Darmstadt, Germany

Added By
Sandra Lang
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Inner courtyard of Jagdschloss Kranichstein.   LSDSL/cc by-sa 3.0
Inner courtyard of Jagdschloss Kranichstein.   LSDSL/cc by-sa 3.0
Jagdschloss Kranichstein hunting exhibition.   Maulaff/cc by-sa 3.0
  Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
The Deer Hall with dear portraits.   Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
  Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
  Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
Vitriol lighters.   Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
  Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
  Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
Bronze deer statue outside the hunting lodge.   Maulaff/cc by-sa 3.0
  Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
  Vololona / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

The noble family of Hessen-Darmstadt ruled the Darmstadt area of Germany starting in the mid-16th century. They were enthusiastic hunters, especially Count George I, who ordered the construction of the palatial Jagdschloss Kranichstein (Kranichstein Hunting Lodge) to be built in the north of the city in 1578.

For the next 350 years, the local nobility and their guests enjoyed the sport of stalking game at this baroque hunting lodge and its vast surrounding forests. Today, the impressive Kranichstein hunting collection is based on the objects the Hessen-Darmstadt dynasty left behind from this era of courtly hunting.

The museum is full of curious objects, such as hundreds of deer heads with extraordinarily large and/or deformed antlers, ancient armory, musical instruments, as well as historic portraits of deer and boars painted in oil. The Kranichstein collection of deer portraits is well known in the art history world, since the artist Georg Adam Eger painted the animals in such a realistic way the faces almost seem to give insight into their individual personalities. The paintings are placed inside the beautiful baroque ballroom, the “Großer Hirschsaal,” or "Great Deer Hall."

Besides that, the collection includes an incredibly well-preserved taxidermy specimen of a wild boar killed in 1576; a rare set of Vitriol lighters (an early 19th-century forerunner of our contemporary automatic lighters); and special carriages used to transport prey from more distant forests to Kranichstein. (The boar and deer transports were quite frequent since the local game populations were not able to reproduce in line with the demand.)

The Museum Jagdschloss Kranichstein was opened in 1917. The complex today also includes a small natural history museum, a hotel and restaurant in one wing of the palace, and a huge public park on the former hunting grounds.

Related Tags

Hunting Hunting And Taxidermy Museums Museums And Collections Architecture Sports Palaces

Know Before You Go

The palace is located 4 miles from Darmstadt center and can be easily accessed by bicycle or public transport. The museum is open from Tuesday through Friday: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday, Sunday and official holidays from 10:00 a.m. to 6 p.m. The entrance fee (5/3€) also includes a visit at “Bioversum,” a small natural history museum located inside the historical hunting arsenal building (Kranichsteiner Straße 253), just a few steps from the actual hunting palace.

Community Contributors

Added By

Vololona

Edited By

Meg

  • Meg

Published

January 24, 2019

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Museum Jagdschloss Kranichstein
261 Kranichsteiner Str.
Darmstadt
Germany
49.90033, 8.697281
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Darmstadt Railway Museum

Darmstadt, Germany

miles away

Waldspirale

Darmstadt, Germany

miles away

Russian Chapel in Darmstadt

Darmstadt, Germany

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Darmstadt

Darmstadt

Germany

Places 8

Nearby Places

Darmstadt Railway Museum

Darmstadt, Germany

miles away

Waldspirale

Darmstadt, Germany

miles away

Russian Chapel in Darmstadt

Darmstadt, Germany

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Darmstadt

Darmstadt

Germany

Places 8

Related Places

  • The Wildlife Sports and Educational Museum

    Amsterdam, New York

    The Wildlife Sports and Educational Museum

    This sprawling taxidermy collection celebrates the art and history of sport hunting.

  • Sculpture of John Rex Gates with a Pointer and Setter behind a covey of quail exploding upward in flight

    Grand Junction, Tennessee

    National Bird Dog Museum

    An homage to the pointers and retrievers that have long been a hunter's best friend.

  • Spear Hunting Museum. (Creative Commons)

    Summerdale, Alabama

    Spear Hunting Museum

    Founded by a man who called himself the greatest hunter alive.

  • Inside the museum.

    Danville, Alabama

    Jesse Owens Museum

    A fascinating museum near the birthplace of the greatest track and field athlete of all time.

  • Entrance to the museum.

    Aranjuez, Spain

    Aranjuez Bullfighting Museum

    This bullfighting museum is part of a bullfighting coliseum (plaza de toros) built in the 18th century.

  • The Neoclassical palace is reason enough to visit.

    Corfu, Greece

    Corfu Museum of Asian Art

    A spectacular Neoclassical palace is home more than 15,000 artifacts and works of art.

  • The Old Archiepiscopal Palace

    Velha Goa, India

    The Old Archiepiscopal Palace

    In Old Goa, the former residence of the archbishop now houses a permanent exhibition.

  • Main hall inside the Ráday Palace

    Pécel, Hungary

    Ráday Palace

    A seemingly unassuming palace near Budapest hides a stupendously decorated hall.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.