The entire collection from Africa and Asia is presented on an additional exhibition space of 600 m² on the third floor of our museum.
Wooden locks of the Dogon and Bamana and carved doors from Western Africa demonstrate various systems of locking from Africa south of the Sahara. There is a large collection of Tuareg padlocks made out of silver, brass, copper and iron.
In Asia the focus of Hanns Schell´s collecting is on locks, keys, caskets and doors from the Himalayan regoin. From his numerous travels he brought back exquisitely chased and engraved padlocks from Nepal and Tibet. Large hammered silver boxes from Tibetan monasteries are the highlight of the collection. China and the Indo-iranian Area contribute padlocks in the shape of animals and fine boxes made out of a large variety of materials. Elaborate carved doors from Pakistan and northern India complete the exhibition.