I’m not a huge fan of asparagus. Occasionally I’ll have it in a salad or quiche, but to visit a whole museum dedicated to it is a bit much, even for me. Since 1985, the European Asparagus Museum (Europäisches Spargelmuseum) has been located in Schrobenhausen, Bavaria, Germany.
In Germany the asparagus is kinda big deal because people consider it to be the “königliche Gemüse” or “royal vegetable”. Available only to the nobility since Ancient Roman times, the asparagus finally became available to the average German in the mid 1800s. The asparagus season or “Spargelzeit” in May/June is such a massive event in Germany that every restaurant changes its menu to include multiple asparagus dishes. There’s also asparagus seminars, asparagus tours, asparagus competitions; and in Schwetzingen an “Asparagus King” is crowned based on the “size of his asparagus stalk”.
Back to the museum…in a 15th century tower next to the old city wall there are three floors of exhibits dedicated to asparagus agriculture, horticulture, conservation, gastronomy, history, medical and pharmaceutical science, table decoration, ceramics, silver, advertising, literature, art and curiosities. You’ll even find an Andy Warhol painting of…you guessed it…an asparagus.
