Deutsches Optisches Museum

About the museum

The Optisches Museum was founded in 1922 by the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung to document the history of optical instruments and showcase the achievements of Jena's optics industry. After an initial period in the neighboring Volkshaus, it moved in 1924 into the reinforced concrete building on today's Carl-Zeiss-Platz, which had originally been built for a state optics school.

During World War II, the holdings were evacuated and survived. After years at other locations, the museum returned to its original home in 1976/77. From the 1990s, the Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung ran the museum; in 2002, the reconstructed historic Zeiss workshop of 1866 was added.

The collection includes eyeglasses and visual aids from several centuries, microscopes, telescopes, cameras, and ophthalmological instruments, and is one of the most important of its kind. In 2016, five partners founded the Stiftung Deutsches Optisches Museum; since then the museum has been known as the D.O.M.

In July 2019 the museum closed for a complete refurbishment, an extension and an entirely new exhibition. The project is run by a public–private partnership of the City of Jena, Carl Zeiss AG, the Ernst Abbe Foundation, the Carl Zeiss Foundation and Friedrich Schiller University; since 2022 Jenoptik AG has also supported its operation. The aim is a national flagship museum of optics and photonics.

Across more than 3,100 square metres in the listed former school of optics and a new building, a hands-on exhibition is being created on four floors: over 100 interactive stations let visitors experience physical phenomena, while historic instruments show how optics is used in everyday life and in research. In the “Shop Window of Optics Research”, young scientists present their current projects at eight stations, with topics changing every six months. A dedicated room is devoted to spectroscopy: a heliostat directs sunlight into the building and splits it into its colours in front of a large historic painting featuring Joseph von Fraunhofer. On the top floor, part of the roughly 110,000 glass samples from 100 years of SCHOTT production is staged as a glass archive.

The new building with its translucent, artistically designed façade is being planned by Studio QWERTZ (architecture), Bartenbach (lighting design) and Studio Other Spaces by Olafur Eliasson and Sebastian Behmann – their first architectural project in Germany. It provides step-free access to the whole museum and houses a museum café. Since 2022 the project has been one of the National Urban Development Projects; in 2024 it received a Polis Award in the category “Reactivated Centres”, and since 2024 the federal government has funded it as a cultural institution of national importance. The reopening is planned for 2028.

Highlights

• One of the world's most important collections on the history of eyeglasses
• Historic microscopes and instruments of Jena's optics industry
• Replica of the Zeiss workshop from 1866
• In future, over 100 interactive stations and a “Shop Window of Optics Research”
• Glass archive with thousands of glass samples from 100 years of SCHOTT production
• New building with a façade by Studio Other Spaces (Olafur Eliasson, Sebastian Behmann)

Founded

1922

Operated by

Stiftung Deutsches Optisches Museum

Director

Prof. Dr. Timo Mappes (Gründungs- und wissenschaftlicher Direktor); ab 1.11.2026 zusätzlich Carsten Müller als Verwaltungsdirektor

Admission & discounts

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

After reopening, the new building will provide step-free access to the entire museum.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Getting there & parking

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Amenities & dining

After reopening: museum café in the new building, also open beyond museum hours; lounge overlooking the atrium for small celebrations.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Plan your visit