Museum Für Sepulkralkultur

What Museum Für Sepulkralkultur does

The Museum für Sepulkralkultur, located at Weinbergstraße 25–27 in Kassel, Germany, is a non-profit cultural institution operating since 1992 as the world's only museum exclusively dedicated to death, burial, mourning, and memorial culture. It is operated by the registered association Arbeitsgemeinschaft Friedhof und Denkmal e.V. and is closely linked to the Zentralinstitut für Sepulkralkultur (founded 1979), which together combine museum work, academic research, mediation, and association activities under one roof. The institution maintains a permanent collection and rotating special exhibitions, a research library, an online publication shop selling the 5-volume Großes Lexikon zur Bestattungs- und Friedhofskultur plus yearbooks and catalogs, and educational programs for the general public, families, and death-care professionals.

The museum is currently mid-way through a comprehensive reconceptualization, energy-efficient renovation, and functional expansion project totaling 14 million EUR, of which 7 million EUR was allocated by the German Bundestag in November 2019, with additional planning support from Land Hessen (759,000 EUR) and Stadt Kassel (50,000 EUR). The redesign is led by Kassel-based Schulze Berger Architekten (building) and Berlin-based gewerkdesign (exhibition design, selected from 30 firms), with a planned reopening in 2028. Interim operations are sustained through the special exhibition series 'dazwischen. Du, das Leben und die Endlichkeit', traveling exhibitions such as 'Dialog mit dem Ende', the children's program 'Klappe zu, Affe tot', and relocated events in Kassel city center.

Revenue is derived from museum admissions (including Wednesday public guided tours), publication sales through an online shop shipping twice weekly, recurring institutional funding from Bund, Land Hessen, and Stadt Kassel, corporate sponsorship from Ahorn Gruppe, Sparda-Bank Hessen, Kasseler Sparkasse, Evangelische Bank and others, and benefit events such as 'Kunstwerke für den Tod'. The museum also reaches audiences through Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, SoundCloud, and a GDPR-compliant Brevo newsletter, and maintains GDPR, BGG, and BITV 2.0-aligned accessibility practices. Its national significance was formalized when German cemetery culture was inscribed on the UNESCO national inventory of intangible cultural heritage on March 13, 2020.

Name

Museum Für Sepulkralkultur

Legal name

Arbeitsgemeinschaft Friedhof und Denkmal e. V.

Website

https://sepulkralmuseum.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Museum für Sepulkralkultur in Kassel, Germany, is the world's only museum exclusively dedicated to death, burial, mourning, and memorial culture, serving the general public, families, scholars, and death-care professionals through exhibitions, research, publications, and educational programs since 1992.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Museum Services

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Libraries and Archives (51921)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty Museums (e.g., Maritime, Aviation, Sports, Music, Film) (THAJADAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA), Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations) (THAJADAI), Archives, Special Collections & Preservation Operations (Rare Materials, Conservation) (EDAEAGAJ)

Keywords

• Sepulchral culture museum
• Burial culture exhibitions
• Mourning and memorial culture
• Death studies research
• Cemetery culture education

Headquarters

HQ city

Kassel

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Museum Admissions: Revenue generated from visitor tickets to the museum's permanent and special exhibitions, including public guided tours.
2. Publication Sales: Sale of publications including the Großes Lexikon zur Bestattungs- und Friedhofskultur (5 volumes), exhibition catalogs, yearbooks, memorial cards, and other scholarly works through the online shop.
3. Sponsorships and Donations: Financial support from corporate sponsors including Ahorn Gruppe, Sparda-Bank Hessen, Kasseler Sparkasse, Evangelische Bank, and the Freundeskreis des Museums. Also receives donations from the public for the museum's reconceptualization project.
4. Government Funding: Institutional funding from federal (Bund), state (Land Hessen), and municipal (Stadt Kassel) government sources, recognizing the museum's national cultural significance. The German Bundestag allocated 7 million EUR for the reconceptualization project.
5. Benefit Events: Special fundraising events such as 'Ein Abend für den Tod' where art works are sold with proceeds supporting museum projects including accessibility improvements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Museum für Sepulkralkultur operates as a cultural institution dedicated to death, mourning, burial, and memorial culture. It offers permanent and special exhibitions, academic research, a specialized library, educational programs for children and adults, and a publication shop selling scholarly works including the 5-volume Lexikon zur Bestattungs- und Friedhofskultur. The museum combines exhibition work, research, mediation, and association activities at one site.

Product overview

The Museum für Sepulkralkultur is a cultural institution dedicated to death, mourning, burial, and memorial culture. It operates as a unified museum experience offering permanent and rotating special exhibitions, academic research through its Zentralinstitut, a library, publication shop, and educational programs. The museum's core offerings include exhibitions exploring humanity's relationship with mortality, supported by research services, publications (including the multi-volume 'Großes Lexikon zur Bestattungs- und Friedhofskultur'), and accessibility features. Educational programs serve both general public and specialized audiences including children.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Museum Exhibitions (Permanent and Special)
• Publication Shop
• Children's Program 'Klappe zu, Affe tot'
• Research on Sepulchral Culture
• Library Services
• Education and Guided Tour Programs
• Traveling Exhibitions
• Professional Development and Consulting (Fortbildung & Beratung)

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Schulze Berger Architekten Stadtplaner BDA PartG mbBcoreTechnology or IntegrationKassel-based architecture firm that won the first prize in the European competition for the museum's reconceptualization, renovation, and expansion. Responsible for building design and spatial planning.
• gewerkdesign GmbH + Co. KG (Berlin)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBerlin-based interdisciplinary design studio selected to design the new permanent exhibition and first special exhibition after reopening. Won the design competition out of 30 firms. Creates sceneries as walkable sculptural experiences.
• Arbeitsgemeinschaft Friedhof und Denkmal e.V.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe museum's parent association coordinating the 'Runder Tisch zur Friedhofskultur im 21. Jahrhundert' (Round Table for Cemetery Culture in the 21st Century), bringing together leading national cemetery and funeral organizations.
• Körber Stiftung HamburgminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation cooperating on the traveling exhibition 'Dialog mit dem Ende' exploring end of life and mortality themes through photography and film.
• Trauer NowminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOnline portal for mourning and grief collaborating with the museum on the Advent campaign 'Dein Platz auf dem Friedhof', inviting submissions of favorite cemetery photos.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wiener Bestattungsmuseum (Vienna Funeral Museum): Austria's funeral museum and the German-speaking world's only direct equivalent institution focused on funeral history, comparable mission, and serves as the most direct regional peer for sepulchral culture exhibitions.
• National Museum of Funeral History: Houston, Texas museum dedicated to the history of funeral service with exhibitions on mourning attire, hearses, and embalming; highly comparable in topic and educational programming model.
• Museum of Death: A U.S.-based museum chain (Hollywood, San Diego, New Orleans) explicitly dedicated to death, burial, and mortuary culture — the closest international thematic peer, though it is a commercial tourist attraction rather than a nonprofit research-oriented institution.
• Deutsches Auswandererhaus: German specialty museum in Bremen using immersive, narrative-driven exhibitions on a societally relevant topic, with comparable operating scale and state-of-the-art exhibition design — useful benchmark for reconceptualization.
• The Undertaking Museum: Pittsburgh-based independent museum of funeral history and material culture, comparable in scale and curatorial focus on the death care profession.

Regional players

• Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt: Major regional museum in Hesse state that, like the Museum für Sepulkralkultur, draws on state funding from Land Hessen; useful regional benchmark for institutional scale, funding dynamics, and visitor economics.

Broad incumbents

• Deutsches Historisches Museum: Germany's national history museum in Berlin and a broad incumbent covering historical narratives; comparable in funding structure (federal/state) and institutional scale, though much larger and broader in scope.

Others

• Arbeitsgemeinschaft Friedhof und Denkmal e.V. The museum's own parent association — included as a peer node for completeness given its coordinating role on cemetery culture policy and industry roundtables that shape the museum's content priorities.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC9nGJJIeO2aSr5RL3ekWbXw
• Facebookfacebook.com/sepulkralmuseum.kassel
• Instagraminstagram.com/sepulkral.museum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/museum-f%C3%BCr-sepulkralkultur

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Museum Für Sepulkralkultur