Photo: Deutsches Museum
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The Collections
The collections of the Deutsches Museum comprises over 125,000 objects – from the first automobile to the electron microscope. You can discover our highlights and more online here shortly.
Valuable originals such as the Wright Brothers' first powered airplane, the U1 submarine, the diesel engine or the first program-controlled computer - precious exhibits and their diversity make the collection of the Deutsches Museum one of the most important scientific and technical collections in the world. Collecting historically significant objects is still a core task of the museum today. The collection is regularly expanded, with an average of around 100 new objects added each year. Around 7000 exhibits can be seen in the exhibitions on the Museum Island and in the four branches. But this is only a small part of the total of around 125,000 items in the object collection. There are also items from the collection of the archive and the library of the Deutsches Museum. You can discover selected objects and holdings online here. On our “Deutsches Museum Digital” portal you will find around 52,000 objects, as well as parts of the holdings from the Deutsches Museum archive and books.
Hidden treasures
The collection management team at work in the depot. Photo: Deutsches Museum
The depot
The many items in the collection that are not currently on display are stored in depots at various locations with a total area of 53,000 square meters. The depot rooms reflect the history of the museum and its exhibitions like no other place in the museum. Exhibits from the museum's founding years - acquired by museum founder Oskar von Miller himself at great expense - are stored here as well as exhibits from the recent past and current new additions. Of course, the objects from the exhibitions which are currently being updated as part of the general refurbishment are also stored in the depot rooms.
The archive of the Deutsches Museum is characterised by an impressive variety of valuable holdings. It preserves important bequests, company archives as well as coins, posters, a unique paper history collection and much more. These treasures represent an archival cultural asset of outstanding importance. Some of the archive holdings can be searched in the "Deutsches Museum Digital" portal. The finding aids of around 160 holdings are currently available. Some important holdings are available completely digitised. The research offer is regularly expanded.