GlockenStadtMuseum Apolda

Current exhibitions

About the museum

The museum's roots go back to 1933, when a local history society showed a first collection on the town's history under the roof of the "Graue Schule" (Gray School); two years later it moved to the Martinskirche. In 1951 the collection moved into the Neoclassical villa at Bahnhofstraße 41, a factory owner's house built in 1854 that the town had acquired in 1924. In 1952 the bell museum was set up there, based on the extensive collection of Apolda's Schilling family of bell founders.

For centuries Apolda was a town of bell founders: the Rose, Ulrich and Schilling dynasties shaped the craft from the early 18th century onward, and at the beginning of the 20th century the firms Gebr. Ulrich and Franz Schilling Söhne were among the largest foundries in Germany. The last bell foundry closed in 1988. From the 1960s onward, the museum broadened its focus to the general cultural history of the bell; the collection includes around 50 tower bells, hand bells and animal bells, among them a bell cast in the 12th century that is considered the oldest church bell in Thuringia.

The second pillar is the textile history of the town, which grew big as the "Manchester of Thuringia" with knitted and hosiery goods. In 2017 the museum was given the name GlockenStadtMuseum. It closed in January 2024 for the renovation of the villa; since May 25, 2024, the permanent and special exhibitions have been on view as a "Museum auf Zeit" (temporary museum) in the Eiermannbau on Auenstraße.

Highlights

• Thuringia's oldest church bell, from the 12th century
• Many bells may be struck by visitors themselves
• History of the Rose, Ulrich and Schilling bell-founding families
• More than 400 years of textile trade in the "Manchester of Thuringia"
• Temporary home in the Eiermannbau, an industrial building by Egon Eiermann

Permanent exhibitions

• Rose – Ulrich – Schilling: Apoldaer Glockengießer – Cultural history and casting technique of the bell, told through Apolda's great bell-founding dynasties; many bells may be struck.
• Von der Socke zur Obertrikotage – über 400 Jahre Textilgewerbe – Machines, patterns and garments tell of Apolda's rise to a knitwear town in the 19th century.

Founded

1952

Operated by

Stadt Apolda

Director

Klemens Petukat

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

According to the town of Apolda and the Museumsverband Thüringen (Thuringian museum association), admission at the temporary location is free. Guided tours by appointment. Older websites still list admission prices for the main building (€4, reduced €2).

Accessibility

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

Kids & families

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

Getting there & parking

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Amenities & dining

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Events & venue rental

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

Plan your visit