A museum at the heart of the premises of the Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site was opened in the former coal washing facilities of the colliery in the north of Essen. The Ruhr Museum is a new type of regional museum – not the traditional industrial museum but a token of the past and a window onto the Ruhr metropolis of today. Its modern and popular design takes a holistic approach and connects natural and cultural history – it presents myths, images and phenomena of the Ruhr area, the incredible dimensions of our Earth’s history, the long story of the industrialisation as well as its consequences and future perspectives.

The Mineralien-Museum (Minerals Museum), the Museumslandschaft Deilbachtal (Deilbach Valley museum landscape), a geological walking trail, the Halbachhammer and a model flat in the Margarethenhöhe housing scheme are external locations of the museum.