Electrum
Volunteer-run museum of electricity in the Harburg inland port with thousands of historic electrical and household appliances.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The collection goes back to the Hamburgische Electricitäts-Werke (HEW), which from the 1920s gathered devices for training and study purposes. In 1964 the company opened its own museum in a former converter station on Klinikweg in Barmbek, which was given the name electrum after a conversion in 1979. With free admission, experiments and special shows – including on media art – it was among the most visited non-state museums in the city.
For cost reasons, the operator closed the museum at the end of 2001; the holdings went into storage. A support association of employees and friends of the museum campaigned to save it.
In 2010 Vattenfall made the basement of its office building on Harburger Schloßstraße available. After conversion, the electrum reopened on 16 April 2011; since then the association has run it on a voluntary basis. On roughly 530 square metres it shows about 6,000 of a total of around 10,000 objects – from early electrostatic machines through radios and television cabinets to kitchen and household appliances.
Highlights
- Around 6,000 exhibits on the history of electricity
- Historic radio and television sets
- Household appliances from the iron to the toaster
- Siemens dynamo and early electrical engineering
- “Floating frying pan” experiment
Permanent exhibition
- Sammlung zur Geschichte der Elektrizität – Technical devices from more than 130 years of electricity use – from generators and motors through radio and television to the electric household.
- Founded
- 1964
- Operated by
- electrum – Das Museum der Elektrizität e.V.
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €4 |
|---|---|
| Children & teens | –Children have free admission. |
| Booked guided tour outside opening hours (plus admission) | €60 |
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
The entrance can only be reached via four steps.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Amenities & dining
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Guided tours outside opening hours by prior telephone booking. |
