Explore the International Reformation Museum

The International Reformation Museum is housed in a magnificent 18th-century mansion, the Mallet House, built on the site where the Reformation was adopted in Geneva in 1536.

It boasts a collection of around 500 period objects including paintings, engravings, books, manuscripts, medals and photographs, as well as religious objects such as communion cups, watches and original models.

Audio guides are available to provide information on the exhibitions in French, German and English. Finally, special attention has been paid to children, with presentations adapted to their level in each room of the museum.

The Museum is organised into themed rooms covering different periods in the history of the Reformation: the Polemics, the Reformation in France and the Wars of Religion, Calvin and Geneva, the Reformation in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, the Reformation in the 19th century, the "train des bonnes œuvres", the 20th century and the 21st century.

The first room of the museum highlights the importance of the Bible in the 16th-century Reformation, with a display case devoted to Luther and his message, which had never been seen before at the time. The Reformers translated the Bible into everyday languages to make it accessible to everyone, taking advantage of the latest invention of the time: printing.

In 2012, a private collector loaned the museum an unpublished sixteenth-century manuscript by Luther, which has been added to this Luther showcase. The first room of the museum also features a portrait of Luther painted by Cranach the Elder.

Other treasures in the museum include:

• Calvin's Bible: a Latin edition of the Bible published in 1560, considered to be one of John Calvin's most important works.
• Calvin's pulpit: John Calvin's wooden pulpit in St Peter's Church in Geneva, where he preached.
• The Geneva Psalter: a French edition of the Psalms published in 1562, which was one of the most popular books of the Reformation period.
• Manuscript of the La Rochelle Confession of Faith: a document written in 1571 by the French Reformed at their assembly in La Rochelle, defining their faith and principles.
• Mercator map: a two-dimensional map of the world, published in 1569 by the Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator, which was influenced by the geographical discoveries of the Reformation period.