The Linnaeus Museum - Linnaeus’ home in The Linnaeus Garden

Photo of The Linnaeus Museum with its yellow walls.The photo was shot on a cloudy day in fall, when most od the yellow leafs on the limetrees (linden) in the foreground has fallen to the ground. The green shutters are closed on both levels of the building. — Photo: Cecilia Bergström

The Linnaeus Museum is in what was once Carl Linnaeus’ home, beautifully located in the Linnaeus Garden in Uppsala. Objects and portraits tell of Linnaeus’ life and times, both in private and as a scientist.

Home life and scientific achievements

Fotografi av en dörröppning med grå dörrkarmar och väggar klädda med handmålad tapet. I rummet innanför dörröppnigen syns musei-montrat och möbler. — The door way to the parlour of Sara Lisa.

The museum contains unique items which tell of Linnaeus’ home life and his scientific achievements. They include the family’s furniture, household effects, textiles and art; as well as more personal items such as Mrs Linnaeus’ playing cards, spectacles and cookbooks.

It is very unusual for so many items to be preserved from an ordinary professor’s family. It probably has to do with Linnaeus’ enormous reputation: relatives took care of the items they had inherited, highly conscious of where they came from. We see Linnaeus’ medicine cabinet, insect cabinet and herb cabinet, as well as his wife’s imposing dining-room cupboard in walnut, which came from her parental home in Falun.

Porcelain and the famous raspberry dish

Fotografi av en monter med Linnés broderade väst och en silverskål — Linnaeus' waistcoat and th raspberry dish.
Photo Cecilia Bergström

The museum displays parts of several sets of porcelain, both East India porcelain and Swedish tin-glazed earthenware from Rörstrand and Marieberg. Among the silverware we see the famous raspberry dish that Linnaeus received as a gift and in which he kept wild raspberries in his old age that were to cure his gout.

There is also a rich collection of textiles used in Linnaeus’ household, including in particular Dutch and German linen damask in the form of cloths and table napkins. Of especial interest is Linnaeus’ own richly embroidered waistcoat and a wedding dress in French silk that one of his daughters wore.

Portraits and paintings

Oljemålning med en Carl von Linné med samedräkt och en linnea i handen. — Foto Mikael Wallerstedt

Portraits worth a special mention include Linnaeus in Lapland clothing – painted by Martin Hoffman in 1737, and a pastel by Gustaf Lundberg, 1753.

Linnaeus’ scientific activities brought items from his journeys, his time as a professor and his experiments. Parts of the university’s natural history collection, which Linnaeus kept, are on display.

The Swedish Linnaeus Society supports the museum.

Photo showing a statue of a young Car Linnaeus, made by Carl Eldh. LInnaeus holds a twinflower, linnea borealis, in his left hand. The statue is placed in front of the yellow two level building housing The Linnaeus Museum. In the foreground flowering Chorydalis nobilis.