The Zuhl Museum: Where Rocks Come Alive! Part art gallery, part natural history museum, the Zuhl collection at NMSU showcases thousands of beautiful specimens of petrified wood, fossils and minerals.
Through the generosity of Herb and Joan Zuhl, the Zuhl museum is the preeminent venue on the NMSU campus to view spectacular world-class geologic specimens. The general public, K-12 students and teachers, university students, and attendees of NMSU special events, interact with the collection through tours, educational programs, and outreach events to learn about minerals, fossils and earth history.
For more than thirty years, Herb and Joan Zuhl have collected petrified wood, fossils, minerals, and rocks for their private collection and have sold to collectors, designers and museums worldwide. The Zuhls chose Las Cruces, NM as their retirement home in 1991 and sold their Manhattan business, keeping more than 2,000 of the most impressive pieces for themselves. In April 2000, the Zuhls donated their collection to be displayed at New Mexico State University.
In 2003, a gift from the Zuhls underwrote the cost of remodeling and expanding gallery space in the NMSU Alumni and Visitors Center to house a museum for the collection. The museum opened its doors on October 30, 2004 and in 2007, another gift made possible an extension to the museum. Today over 1,800 specimens are in the Zuhl Collection with the majority on display in the Zuhl Museum, the Zuhl Library and Gardiner Hall.
The Zuhl Collection has over 1,800 specimens of petrified wood, fossils and minerals.
The Zuhl Museum is the perfect locations for field trips for all age ranges. The Zuhl Collection spans interests, generations, and education levels. The Zuhl Museum offers guided tours of exhibits to community and school groups. Saturday tours can be scheduled on special request and at director's discretion.
Printouts are available online for museum related activities and coloring sheets.
The museum staff/volunteers participate in community outreach activities including gem and mineral shows, school programs and university programs.
The Zuhl Museum is housed inside the NMSU Alumni and Visitor's Center. It contains two galleries and an outdoor courtyard. The museum can be reserved for events such as receptions or dinners.
The Zuhl Museum in governed by New Mexico State University and is under the guidance of the Department of Geological Sciences.
The majority of the pieces can be viewed at the Zuhl Museum but don’t miss the displays in the Zuhl Library and at Gardiner Hall, home to the Department of Geological Sciences.
Access: General Public, Students, Scholars
Appointment required: False
The Zuhl Museum is available for special event rentals including small receptions or dinners. Tours are available at request.
The Zuhl Museum is one of the five NMSU Museums, showcasing the uniqueness and excellence NMSU offers. A Southern New Mexico Treasure unique to Las Cruces. The Zuhl Collection can also be viewed online via the Zuhl Collection Database.