Hameln Museum
The Hameln Museum is located in two buildings in the historic old town of Hameln , the Leisthaus and the neighboring Stiftsherrenhaus . The two buildings in Osterstraße are among the most important buildings from the time of the Weser Renaissance in Hameln.
The museum, created in 1912, shows the history and culture of the city of Hameln and the Weser Uplands in its new permanent exhibition, which opened in 2011 . One focus is on the world-famous Pied Piper legend , which is also presented in the museum's “Pied Piper Theater”.
The museum is barrier-free and is aimed at visitors of all age groups with its educational offers.
history
A forerunner of the museum is the collection of Friedrich Wilhelm Haspelmath, who was born in Hameln in 1790 and who purchased many objects on his travels and exhibited them in the Haspelmath Tower, a tower of the Hameln city fortifications . The tower and the collection were later donated to the museum association, which was founded in 1898 "for the collection and preservation of antiquities of the city and the district of Hameln".
In 1910 the siblings Adolph and Friederike Wallbaum bequeathed the Leisthaus to the museum association, in which the museum was given a permanent location after extensive renovation. When it opened in 1912, the history of the museum began as an independent house, as it now presented the Haspelmath collection, the objects acquired by the museum association and the municipal collections previously housed in the attic of the town hall under one roof.
During the Second World War , substantial stocks were relocated; the Leisthaus was damaged by American artillery attacks in April 1945. In 1946 the museum association transferred ownership of the building to the city of Hameln, but continued to operate the museum. In the late 1940s, the museum was reopened to the public.
In 1977 a full-time museum director was hired for the house, which had been run on a voluntary basis until then. As part of a renewed renovation, the museum was extended to include the upper floors of the neighboring canons' house and both houses were connected by a transition.
The last restoration of both buildings took place from 2008 to 2011. Archaeological investigations of the building substance of the Leisthaus were also carried out. The objects found in the hallway can be seen in the museum. The permanent exhibition was redesigned parallel to the construction work. The reopening took place in 2011 in the presence of the then Prime Minister of Lower Saxony, David McAllister .
collection
The museum's collection documents the history of the city of Hameln and its surroundings. The focal points of the collection include the Pied Piper Legend and Hamelin's economic and social history. There are also thematic special collections, an extensive photo archive and a library run by the museum association.
Exhibitions
Permanent exhibition
In the new permanent exhibition opened in 2011, the history of the city of Hameln and its surroundings is told on 1,200 m². Divided thematically by epoch, it illuminates the major political events as well as the everyday life of people in a strategically and economically important city.
Central topics include the founding of the city and life in the Middle Ages , the time of the Reformation , the economic and cultural heyday of the Weser Renaissance, the expansion of the city into the fortress of Hameln and the fortifications on the Klüt , the development of industry and tourism in the 19th century and finally the 20th century with the National Socialist harvest thanksgiving festivals and the renovation of the old town from the 1970s.
The outstanding exhibits in the exhibition include the Hamelin Missal from 1480 and two angel chandeliers from the Vischer workshop in Nuremberg .
A separate exhibition area is dedicated to the Pied Piper of Hamelin . Among other things, early evidence of the history and origin of the saga, paintings and drawings, including by Alfred Kubin, Walther Caspari and Hans Kohlschein , examples of filmic and musical adaptations, the pied piper's career as an advertising and tourism icon, and illustrated children's books are on display all over the world.
The mechanical pied piper theater
Otto Steiner's so-called mechanical Pied Piper Theater has been part of the exhibition since 2011. It is an artistic installation that tells the story of the Pied Piper of Hameln in a stylized way in the style of a theatrical performance with mechanical figures and using light and sound effects.
Special exhibitions since 2001
The following special exhibitions have taken place over the past few years: (excerpts)
- 2002: "Bicycle history (s) from the Weserbergland"
- 2003: "We lived in Hameln" - portrait photography around 1940
- 2004: “Citizens conquer their history.” Museum and “Museum Association in Hameln” and “Hundred Years of Electricity. Hameln full of energy "
- 2005: "canceled." Postcards hostile to Jews
- 2006: “There and away” - Migration in the Weserbergland
- 2007: “Höchst Eisenbahn!” An exhibition by Eisenbahnfreunde e. V. Hameln
- 2008: "Stand still - historical photos from Hameln"
- 2009 to 2011: Closure of the museum due to renovation
- 2013: “Do you remember ...? Hamelin through the ages "and" Seduced by a Pfeiffer ... - Hamelin and the Pied Piper "
- 2014: “Building bridges. The British and Hamelin 1945–2014 "
- 2015: “Let's go! Cinema dreams in the Weser Uplands "
- 2016: “The anniversary exhibition. The legendary world of the Brothers Grimm "
- 2017: “Luther starts! 500 years of the Reformation "
- 2017: "400 Years of the Wedding House"
- 2017-2018: "Rats!"
- 2018: "Rudolf Riege. The forgotten Bauhaus student "
- 2018–2019: “The 1970s in Hameln. Snapshots from Rudi Günther "
- 2018–2019: “Inspiration Middle Ages. Time of the medicus "
- 2019-2020: "James Bond. The power of seduction "
- 2020: “Sunk in ruins. Market church and town hall 75 years ago "
- from summer 2020: “Pied Piper International. On the Path of the Pied Piper "
literature
- Heinrich Spanuth: History of the City of Hameln , Hameln 1963
- Museum Association Hameln: 105 years of the Museum Association and Museum Hameln , Hameln 2004
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Museum Association Hameln: 105 Years of the Museum Association and Museum Hameln , Hameln 2004, p. 32
- ↑ Museum Hameln reopened in picture from December 13, 2011
- ↑ Pied Piper in: Die Welt from October 19, 2011
- ^ Exhibition archive - Museum Hameln. (No longer available online.) In: www.museum-hameln.de. Formerly in the original ; Retrieved June 18, 2016 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )
- ^ Museum Hameln: Review - Museum Hameln. (No longer available online.) In: www.museum-hameln.de. Formerly in the original ; Retrieved June 18, 2016 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )
- ^ Museum Hameln: special exhibitions since 2008. (No longer available online.) In: www.museum-hameln.de. Formerly in the original ; Retrieved June 18, 2016 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )
Coordinates: 52 ° 6 '17.3 " N , 9 ° 21' 30.3" E