Diözesanmuseum Freising

Current exhibitions

About the museum

The Diözesanmuseum (diocesan museum) opened on November 16, 1974, at a time when many German dioceses were founding their own museums. It moved into the Neoclassical building on the Domberg erected by Matthias Berger in 1870, which had served as a minor seminary for future priests until 1968. Its first director was Sigmund Benker; since 2012, Christoph Kürzeder has headed the museum of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.

In July 2013 the museum had to close for fire safety reasons. The subsequent architectural competition was won by Brückner & Brückner with a design that opens the building to the outside through "opened walls"; from 2018 it was converted in keeping with its listed status and reopened on October 2, 2022. Bright rooms, views over the city and the Alps, a restaurant in the vaulted hall, and heating entirely without fossil fuels mark the new beginning. During the closure, the museum held exhibitions at Kloster Beuerberg and in cooperation with other institutions.

The collection comprises around 50,000 objects of Christian art and culture. Its focal points are late Gothic works from Old Bavaria, Swabia, and the Alpine region, southern German Baroque and Rococo, and testimonies of liturgy, popular piety, and monastic life; there is also a holding of early Christian and Byzantine art centered on the Freising Lukasbild (St. Luke icon). Contemporary art is firmly integrated – for example James Turrell's light room in the former house chapel, a bronze figure by Berlinde De Bruyckere in the atrium, and Kiki Smith's chapel on the grounds, consecrated in 2023.

Highlights

• Freising Lukasbild, an important Byzantine icon of the Virgin Mary
• Light room "A Chapel for Luke" by James Turrell
• Late Gothic art by artists including Erasmus Grasser, Jan Polack, and Gabriel Angler
• Baroque and Rococo works by Ignaz Günther, Johann Baptist Straub, and the Asam brothers
• Mary’s Mantle Chapel by Kiki Smith
• Terrace with views over Freising to the Alps

Permanent exhibitions

• Schausammlung – Christian art spanning two millennia – from early Christian and Byzantine works around the Lukasbild through Bavarian late Gothic and Cranach to Baroque, Rococo, and contemporary art.
• A CHAPEL FOR LUKE and his scribe Lucius the Cyrene (James Turrell) – Permanent light installation in the former house chapel, where colored light seems to dissolve the boundaries of the room; open Tue–Sun 10:00–11:30 and 14:30–16:00.

Founded

1974

Operated by

Erzdiözese München und Freising

Director

Christoph Kürzeder

Admission & discounts

From 16:00, all visitors pay the reduced price. Free admission for, among others, members of the friends' association, ICOM members, and the press. Exclusive tour of the state rooms of the Bel Étage in the cathedral: €120 per group (max. 20 people), Sundays in July, August, and September.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: not available
• 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

The entire building, including the exhibitions, the Turrell light room, and the restaurant, is step-free or reachable by elevator. The accessible Dombergbahn (inclined elevator at the corner of Bahnhofstraße/Brunnhausgasse) leads up to the Domberg. Due to construction work, there are currently no accessible parking spaces in front of the museum; brief stops for drop-off are possible. Inclusive education programs via kunstvermittlung@dimu-freising.de.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Kids’ birthday parties

Open DIMU workshop where families create small objects related to the exhibitions with guidance; children's birthday parties with an individually tailored program. Free admission up to age 18.

Getting there & parking

If not taking the bus up the Domberg, consider using a taxi.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Restaurant
• Museum shop
• Coat check

Bar, restaurant and café "DIMU" in the vaulted Weihenstephaner Saal with a sun terrace (Tue–Sun 10:00–18:00; closed for private events on certain days). Museum shop; another shop with an info point in the Marstall on Domplatz (open daily). Dogs are not allowed in the museum.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Weddings / ceremonies

The museum restaurant can be booked with a set menu for celebrations such as baptisms, birthdays, and weddings. James Turrell's light room can be booked exclusively for 30 minutes.

Plan your visit