Biotopia brings Uppland’s wildlife and landscapes into focus through immersive early twentieth-century dioramas, geological displays and hands-on learning. Opened as Biologiska museet in 1910, it pairs preserved habitat scenes with a modern program rooted in Uppsala’s surrounding nature.
Quick facts
Biologiska museet opened on 11 November 1910, the day after its formal inauguration, and was created by naturalist Gustaf Kolthoff.
The museum closed for renovation from 2004 to 2007; it reopened in October 2007 as Biotopia with its historic dioramas retained and renewed.
The 1909 donation was offered to Uppsala University first; after it declined, Uppsala city accepted the gift and responsibility for the museum’s upkeep.
Get directions to Biotopia. Confirm the visitor entrance and current access with the venue before travelling.
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At Biotopia, a moose, a pool frog and a black grouse appear in settings designed to make you look beyond a specimen label. The museum’s old dioramas place animals inside Uppland landscapes, while sounds, lighting and hands-on activities invite visitors to ask how those landscapes formed. The subject is regional nature, but the building itself carries more than a century of Uppsala’s public science.
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