In the centre of Aberdeen, the Museum lies in the University of Aberdeen's Marischal College, the second-largest granite structure in the world. The museum was founded in 1786, with material that has been donated by generations of friends and graduates of the University. This has resulted in collections of high quality material, most notably Egyptian and Classical antiquities, non-Western ethnography, Scottish prehistory and numismatics, that rank alongside the largest in Scotland. The museum also has a large local history collection and a large fine art collection on display. Today, the care of these collections is enhanced by a purpose-built conservation laboratory. The museum has an excellent track record of ensuring that its collection is used to inspire and educate a wide range of visitors through innovative exhibitions, evening lectures, an award-winning schools service, a young archaeologists club, resources for higher education and support for researchers.

The Aberdeen University Museum supplied 14,683 object records, filtered to North East Scotland.