Archives and Museum Foundation Wuppertal
The Archive and Museum Foundation Wuppertal was founded in 1998. Its purpose is to collect and to secure the historical documents and artefacts of the United Evangelical Mission (UEM) and its predecessors such as the Rhenish Mission founded in 1828. However, the foundation does not only collect and keep historic artefacts of missionary activity, but also makes them available for scientific purposes and research.
The missionaries sent out by the Rhenish Mission brought and sent back a great diversity of material to Mission House in Wuppertal: detailed reports on the countries and their people, documents from emerging indigenous congregations, drawings, photographs and all kinds of objects from the cultures of these overseas partners.
Written archives and library
Written archives and library
The written archives have five sub-sections:
1. The archives of the Rhenish Mission Society, 1799-1970
2. The archives of the Bethel Mission, 1886-1970
3. The archives of the United Evangelical Mission (UEM)
4. Mission conferences in Rhineland and Westphalia
5. Map collection
The main purpose of the written archives is the academic documentation and analysis of the history and effectiveness of the United Evangelical Mission and its churches in Africa, Asia and Germany. Its principal tasks are preservation and the collection of further archive material.
As part of the archives, the library contains literature, mainly from the 19th and early 20th centuries, some of which cannot be found elsewhere. It was and continues to be used in preparing for missionary work and presents the impact of the practical and academic work of the missionaries. The library also contains literature on the history of mission.
Its collection is continually expanding with the addition of publishers’ specimen copies and new acquisitions.
Picture Archives
The picture archives documents missionary work from around 1860. A collection of over 35,000 photographs, glass negatives and positives provide a wide variety of source material on the historical background of the mission fields, the lifestyles of the indigenous population and the history of photography. The picture archives also contain sketches, copperplate engravings and old black-and-white films from the early years of the Mission.
Ethnological Museum
The ethnological museum preserves objects from the different fields of work of the UEM and its predecessor organisations. The collections provide an insight into the diversity and the distinctive features of indigenous cultures.
They are also used as a basis for a broad range of educational work in the history of mission and culture and for academic purposes.
Ever-changing exhibitions present the material against the backdrop of the history and present-day realities of life in the countries of origin.
Guided tours focusing on specific themes for different target groups round off the museum’s educational programme.
