Deutsches Museum
Encyclopedia
The Deutsches Museum in Munich
, Germany
, is the world's largest museum
of technology
and science
, with approximately 1.5 million visitors per year and about 28,000 exhibited objects from 50 fields of science and technology. The museum was founded on June 28, 1903, at a meeting of the Association of German Engineers
(VDI) as an initiative of Oskar von Miller
. The full name of the museum in English is German Museum of Masterpieces of Science and Technology (German: Deutsches Museum von Meisterwerken der Naturwissenschaft und Technik). It is the largest museum in Munich.
The main site of the Deutsches Museum is a small island in the Isar
river, which had been used for rafting wood since the Middle Ages
. The island did not have any buildings prior to 1772 because it was regularly flood
ed prior to the building of the Sylvensteinspeicher
.
In 1772 the Isar barracks
were built on the island and, after the flooding of 1899, the buildings were rebuilt with flood protection. In 1903 the city council announced that they would donate the island for the newly built Deutsches Museum. The island formerly known as Kohleinsel (coal island) was then renamed Museumsinsel (museum island).
.
The Flugwerft Schleißheim branch is located some 18 kilometres north of Munich's city centre close to Schleißheim Palace. It is based on the premises of one of the first military airbases in Germany founded just before World War I. It comprises the old air control and command centre building as well as modern buildings added in the late 2000s after strong endorsement from Franz-Josef Strauss, the then prime minister of the local state of Bavaria, who was a passionate flyer.
The "Flugwerft Schleißheim" displays various interesting airplanes for which not enough room was available at the "Museumsinsel" site in downtown Munich. Among the more prominent exhibits is a Horten flying wing glider
built in the 1940s, restored from the few surviving parts. A collection of the German constructions of VTOL (vertical take off and landing) planes developed in the 1950s and 1960s is quite unique. A range of Vietnam era fighter planes as well as Russian planes taken over from East Germany after the reunification are shown.
This outstation also features a workshop dedicated to the restoration of all kind of airplanes for the purpose of static display.
The latest branch of the Deutsches Museum, located at Theresienhöhe in Munich, opened in 2003 and is called the Deutsches Museum Verkehrszentrum and is focused on transportation technology.
The branch located in Bonn was opened in 1995 and focuses on German technology, science and research
after 1945.
Oskar von Miller studied electrical engineering
and is otherwise known for building the first high voltage
line from Miesbach
to Munich
(57 km) in 1882 for the electrical technology exhibition at the Glaspalast
in Munich. In 1883 he joined AEG
and founded an engineering office in Munich. The Frankfurt
electricity exhibition in 1891 and several power plants contributed to the reputation of Oskar von Miller. In the early years, the exhibition and the collection of the Deutsches Museum were strongly influenced personally by Oskar von Miller.
In June 1903 Prince Ludwig
agreed to act as patron of the museum and the city of Munich donated Coal Island as a site for the project. In addition, exhibits began to arrive from Munich, Germany, and abroad including collections from the Bavarian Academy
. As no dedicated museum building existed the exhibits were displayed in the National Museum.
On November 12, 1906 the temporary exhibits at the National Museum are ceremonially opened to the public and on November 13 the foundation stone was laid for the permanent museum.
The first name of the museum, the "German Museum for Masterpieces of Natural Science and Technology", was not meant to limit the museum to German advances in science and technology, but to express the importance of science and technology to the German people.
Oskar von Miller opened the new museum on his seventieth birthday, 2 May 1925 after a delay of almost ten years. From the beginning the museum displays are backed up by documents available in a public library
and archives which are open seven days a week to ensure access to the working public.
Prior to and during World War II
the museum was put on a shoestring budget by the Nazi party and many exhibits were allowed to get out of date with a few exceptions such as the new automobile room dedicated 7 May 1937. By the end of 1944 the museum was badly damaged by air bombings with 80% of the buildings and 20% of the exhibits damaged or destroyed. As Allied troops marched into Munich in April 1945 museum director Karl Bässler barely managed to keep the last standing bridge to Museum Island from being blown up by retreating German troops.
Following the war the museum had to be closed for repairs and a number of temporary tenants, such as the College of Technology and the Post Office used museum space as their own buildings were being reconstructed. The Museum was also home to the Central Committee of the Liberated Jews
, representing Jewish displaced person
s in Germany after the war.
In November 1945 the library was able to reopen, followed by the congress hall in January 1946. A special exhibit on fifty years of the Diesel engine
was able to open in October 1947 and the regular exhibits began reopening in May 1948. Not until 1965, more than twenty years after the end of the war in Germany, did the exhibit area match (and then exceed) pre-war size.
During the 1950s the museum focused on natural sciences rather than technology and many of the traditional large exhibits, such as civil engineering, were reduced in size to make way for more modern technological advances.
In August 1969 the Apollo 8
space capsule was shown in a special exhibit entitled "Man and Space" and in 1970 the first full-time director, Theo Stillger, was appointed. In the 1970s the mission statement of the museum was modified to encourage the explanation of the cultural significance of science and technology in exhibits.
The early 1980s saw severe damage to several exhibits due to arson resulting in the smallest exhibit space of 34,140 square meters. This was followed by an extensive reconstruction effort and additional building bringing the total exhibit space to 55,000 square meters by 1993. The 1980s and 90s also brought agreements with the Science Centre in Bonn and the government resulting in the creation of Deutsches Museum Bonn
and the Flugwerft Schleißheim
airfield exhibit.
In 1996 the Bavarian Government gave buildings at the historic Theresienhöhe site in Munich to the Deutsches Museum resulting in the creation of the new transportation museum, the Deutsches Museum Verkehrszentrum, which opened in 2003 and now houses the road vehicle and train exhibits that were removed from the original Deutsches Museum site. The Theresienhöhe quarter is a new area on the edge of the inner city of Munich, and the Museum of Transport is a part of the quarter's design of mixed use.
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, is the world's largest museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
of technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
and science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, with approximately 1.5 million visitors per year and about 28,000 exhibited objects from 50 fields of science and technology. The museum was founded on June 28, 1903, at a meeting of the Association of German Engineers
Verein Deutscher Ingenieure
Verein Deutscher Ingenieure is an organization of 139,000 engineers and natural scientists.Established in 1856, the VDI is today the largest engineering association in Western Europe....
(VDI) as an initiative of Oskar von Miller
Oskar von Miller
Oskar von Miller was a German engineer and founder of the Deutsches Museum, a large museum of technology and science....
. The full name of the museum in English is German Museum of Masterpieces of Science and Technology (German: Deutsches Museum von Meisterwerken der Naturwissenschaft und Technik). It is the largest museum in Munich.
The island museum
Isar
The Isar is a river in Tyrol, Austria and Bavaria, Germany. Its source is in the Karwendel range of the Alps in Tyrol; it enters Germany near Mittenwald, and flows through Bad Tölz, Munich, and Landshut before reaching the Danube near Deggendorf. At 295 km in length, it is the fourth largest river...
river, which had been used for rafting wood since the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. The island did not have any buildings prior to 1772 because it was regularly flood
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
ed prior to the building of the Sylvensteinspeicher
Sylvensteinspeicher
Sylvenstein Dam is an earthen embankment dam in the Isar valley, in the alpine part of Upper Bavaria, Germany which impounds the Sylvenstein Reservoir ....
.
In 1772 the Isar barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
were built on the island and, after the flooding of 1899, the buildings were rebuilt with flood protection. In 1903 the city council announced that they would donate the island for the newly built Deutsches Museum. The island formerly known as Kohleinsel (coal island) was then renamed Museumsinsel (museum island).
Other sites
In addition to the main site on the Museumsinsel, the museum has two branches in and near Munich and one in BonnBonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
.
The Flugwerft Schleißheim branch is located some 18 kilometres north of Munich's city centre close to Schleißheim Palace. It is based on the premises of one of the first military airbases in Germany founded just before World War I. It comprises the old air control and command centre building as well as modern buildings added in the late 2000s after strong endorsement from Franz-Josef Strauss, the then prime minister of the local state of Bavaria, who was a passionate flyer.
Glider (sailplane)
A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the sport of gliding. Some gliders, known as motor gliders are used for gliding and soaring as well, but have engines which can, in some cases, be used for take-off or for extending a flight...
built in the 1940s, restored from the few surviving parts. A collection of the German constructions of VTOL (vertical take off and landing) planes developed in the 1950s and 1960s is quite unique. A range of Vietnam era fighter planes as well as Russian planes taken over from East Germany after the reunification are shown.
This outstation also features a workshop dedicated to the restoration of all kind of airplanes for the purpose of static display.
The latest branch of the Deutsches Museum, located at Theresienhöhe in Munich, opened in 2003 and is called the Deutsches Museum Verkehrszentrum and is focused on transportation technology.
The branch located in Bonn was opened in 1995 and focuses on German technology, science and research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
after 1945.
Oskar von Miller
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
and is otherwise known for building the first high voltage
High voltage
The term high voltage characterizes electrical circuits in which the voltage used is the cause of particular safety concerns and insulation requirements...
line from Miesbach
Miesbach
Miesbach is a town in Bavaria, Germany, and is the capital of the Miesbach district. The district is at an altitude of 697 metres above sea level. It covers an area of approximately 863.50 km² of alpine headlands and in 2004 had a population of 93,942. The town is located 48 km southeast...
to Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
(57 km) in 1882 for the electrical technology exhibition at the Glaspalast
Glaspalast (Munich)
The Glaspalast was a glass and iron exhibition building in Munich modeled after The Crystal Palace in London. The Glaspalast opened for the Erste Allgemeine Deutsche Industrieausstellung on July 15, 1854.-Construction:The Glaspalast was ordered by Maximilian II, King of Bavaria, built by MAN AG...
in Munich. In 1883 he joined AEG
AEG
Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in 1883 by Emil Rathenau....
and founded an engineering office in Munich. The Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
electricity exhibition in 1891 and several power plants contributed to the reputation of Oskar von Miller. In the early years, the exhibition and the collection of the Deutsches Museum were strongly influenced personally by Oskar von Miller.
History
A few months prior to the summer 1903 meeting of the Society of German Engineers, Oskar von Miller gathered a small group who supported his desire to found a science and technology museum. In a showing of support this group spontaneously donated 260,000 marks to the cause and elected a "Provisional Committee" to get the ball rolling.Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria
Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria , was the de facto ruler of Bavaria from 1886 to 1912, due to the incapacity of his nephews, King Ludwig II and King Otto.-Early life:...
agreed to act as patron of the museum and the city of Munich donated Coal Island as a site for the project. In addition, exhibits began to arrive from Munich, Germany, and abroad including collections from the Bavarian Academy
Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities
The Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities is an independent public institution, located in Munich. It appoints scholars whose research has contributed considerably to the increase of knowledge within their subject...
. As no dedicated museum building existed the exhibits were displayed in the National Museum.
On November 12, 1906 the temporary exhibits at the National Museum are ceremonially opened to the public and on November 13 the foundation stone was laid for the permanent museum.
The first name of the museum, the "German Museum for Masterpieces of Natural Science and Technology", was not meant to limit the museum to German advances in science and technology, but to express the importance of science and technology to the German people.
Oskar von Miller opened the new museum on his seventieth birthday, 2 May 1925 after a delay of almost ten years. From the beginning the museum displays are backed up by documents available in a public library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
and archives which are open seven days a week to ensure access to the working public.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the museum was put on a shoestring budget by the Nazi party and many exhibits were allowed to get out of date with a few exceptions such as the new automobile room dedicated 7 May 1937. By the end of 1944 the museum was badly damaged by air bombings with 80% of the buildings and 20% of the exhibits damaged or destroyed. As Allied troops marched into Munich in April 1945 museum director Karl Bässler barely managed to keep the last standing bridge to Museum Island from being blown up by retreating German troops.
Following the war the museum had to be closed for repairs and a number of temporary tenants, such as the College of Technology and the Post Office used museum space as their own buildings were being reconstructed. The Museum was also home to the Central Committee of the Liberated Jews
Sh'erit ha-Pletah
Sh'erit ha-Pletah is a biblical term used by Jewish survivors of the Nazi Holocaust to refer to themselves and the communities they formed following their liberation in the spring of 1945....
, representing Jewish displaced person
Displaced person
A displaced person is a person who has been forced to leave his or her native place, a phenomenon known as forced migration.- Origin of term :...
s in Germany after the war.
In November 1945 the library was able to reopen, followed by the congress hall in January 1946. A special exhibit on fifty years of the Diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
was able to open in October 1947 and the regular exhibits began reopening in May 1948. Not until 1965, more than twenty years after the end of the war in Germany, did the exhibit area match (and then exceed) pre-war size.
During the 1950s the museum focused on natural sciences rather than technology and many of the traditional large exhibits, such as civil engineering, were reduced in size to make way for more modern technological advances.
In August 1969 the Apollo 8
Apollo 8
Apollo 8, the second manned mission in the American Apollo space program, was the first human spaceflight to leave Earth orbit; the first to be captured by and escape from the gravitational field of another celestial body; and the first crewed voyage to return to Earth from another celestial...
space capsule was shown in a special exhibit entitled "Man and Space" and in 1970 the first full-time director, Theo Stillger, was appointed. In the 1970s the mission statement of the museum was modified to encourage the explanation of the cultural significance of science and technology in exhibits.
The early 1980s saw severe damage to several exhibits due to arson resulting in the smallest exhibit space of 34,140 square meters. This was followed by an extensive reconstruction effort and additional building bringing the total exhibit space to 55,000 square meters by 1993. The 1980s and 90s also brought agreements with the Science Centre in Bonn and the government resulting in the creation of Deutsches Museum Bonn
Deutsches Museum Bonn
The Deutsches Museum Bonn is a museum with exhibits and experiments of famous scientists, engineers and inventors. Its central themes are research and technology in Germany after 1945.It is part of the Deutsches Museum in Munich...
and the Flugwerft Schleißheim
Oberschleißheim
Oberschleißheim is a municipality in the district of Munich, in Bavaria, Germany. It is located 13 km north of Munich . As of 2005 it had a population of 11,467....
airfield exhibit.
In 1996 the Bavarian Government gave buildings at the historic Theresienhöhe site in Munich to the Deutsches Museum resulting in the creation of the new transportation museum, the Deutsches Museum Verkehrszentrum, which opened in 2003 and now houses the road vehicle and train exhibits that were removed from the original Deutsches Museum site. The Theresienhöhe quarter is a new area on the edge of the inner city of Munich, and the Museum of Transport is a part of the quarter's design of mixed use.
Current permanent exhibits
- Aerospace
- Agriculture
- Altamira CaveAltamira (cave)Altamira is a cave in Spain famous for its Upper Paleolithic cave paintings featuring drawings and polychrome rock paintings of wild mammals and human hands....
, reproduction of a Spanish cave with stone-age paintings - Amateur Radio
- Astronautics
- Astronomy
- Bridge Building
- Ceramics
- Chemistry
- Chronometry
- Computers
- Digital Imaging (under construction as of 2006)
- Electrical Power
- Energy Technology
- Environment
- Geodesy
- Glass
- History of the Deutsches Museum
- Hydraulic Engineering
- Machine Components
- Machine Tools
- Marine Navigation
- Masterpieces
- Mathematical Gallery
- Mining (Historical and Modern)
- Metallurgy
- Microelectronics
- Mineral Oil and Natural Gas
- Music
- Paper
- Pharmacy
- Physics
- Power Machinery
- Printing
- Scientific InstrumentScientific instrumentA scientific instrument can be any type of equipment, machine, apparatus or device as is specifically designed, constructed and often, through trial and error, ingeniously refined to apply utmost efficiency in the utilization of well proven physical principle, relationship or technology to...
s - Technical Toys
- Telecommunications
- Textile Technology
- Tunnel Construction
- Weights and Measures
Trivia
- Julius RosenwaldJulius RosenwaldJulius Rosenwald was a U.S. clothier, manufacturer, business executive, and philanthropist. He is best known as a part-owner and leader of Sears, Roebuck and Company, and for the Rosenwald Fund which donated millions to support the education of African American children in the rural South, as well...
and The Commercial Club of ChicagoCommercial Club of ChicagoThe Commercial Club of Chicago is an anti-labor club resulted from the 1907 merger of two predecessor Chicago clubs: the Merchants Club and the Commercial Club . Its most active members included George Pullman, Marshall Field, Cyrus McCormick, George Armour, Frederic Delano, Sewell Avery, Rufus...
modeled the Museum of Science and IndustryMuseum of Science and Industry (Chicago)The Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
on the Deutsches Museum.
See also
- Tourism in GermanyTourism in GermanyAccording to Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Reports, Germany is rated as one of the safest travel destinations worldwide. Germany is also the third most visited country in Europe, with a total of 369.6 million overnights during 2010...
- Images from the Deutsches Museum collection (captions in German)