Museum Alte Lateinschule
Großenhain city museum in the Baroque Alte Lateinschule (Old Latin School): city history from its founding to the garrison, with a city model and school detention cell.
About the museum
A schoolmaster is documented at Kirchplatz 4 as early as 1342. After the city fire of 1540, the town school was rebuilt in 1556, and it received its Baroque form after the fire of 1744. In 1828 Karl Benjamin Preusker and Emil Reiniger set up a book collection here that was open to everyone and is regarded as the first public library in Germany; in 1830 a Sunday school for apprentices and journeymen followed.
The local history museum was founded by Großenhain citizens in 1907 on the upper floor of the then commercial school. The collection then moved several times, was closed in 1944, and partly relocated. In 1952 a new start began in Großenhain Palace, in 1956 the museum returned to Kirchplatz, and in 1957 it opened as a district museum.
After 1990 the city took over the building and renovated it from 1991; in 1994 it was given the name Museum Alte Lateinschule. Between 1996 and 2003 the present permanent exhibition took shape step by step. It leads from the founding of the city around 1200 through the cloth-maker town to the airfield and garrison history of the 20th century. The holdings comprise about 80,000 objects, and a modernized storage facility has existed since 2011. The Städtische Museen also include the Bauernmuseum Zabeltitz (farm museum) and a historic classroom.
Highlights
- Large city model that can be explored interactively
- Original, preserved school detention cell on the first floor
- Site of the first public library in Germany (Preusker, 1828)
- City history from cloth-making to the garrison
Permanent exhibitions
- Stadtgeschichte Großenhain – A journey through time from the founding of the city around 1200 through cloth-making to the airfield and garrison history, with a large city model and school detention cell.
- Founded
- 1907
- Operated by
- Stadt Großenhain (Städtische Museen Großenhain)
- Director
- Dr. Jens Schulze-Forster
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €3 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €2University students, trainees, people with severe disabilities, unemployed people, holders of the Saxon Ehrenamtskarte (volunteer card), groups of 20 or more |
| Children & teens | €1free up to age 5 · Children up to age 16 and students €1. |
| Visitors with disabilities | €2companion free |
| Students & apprentices | €2 |
| Groups (20+ people) | €2 per personTour €25, on weekends and outside opening hours €35 (plus admission). |
| Museum café for groups (incl. coffee) | €6On weekends €8. |
Outside opening hours, €1 surcharge per person. Free admission for members of the German and Saxon Museums Associations; Großenhain school classes free.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 5 |
|---|
- Family tours & workshops
- Hands-on stations
- Playground / play area
Interactive city model, children's play corner, and offerings for children and families.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Bus lines A, 409, 410, 450, 451, 454, 455, 456, 458, 460, 461, 462, 463, 467, and 477 (stops Mozartallee, Fr.-Schubert-Straße, Frauenmarkt). From Großenhain Cottbuser Bahnhof station about 10 minutes.
By car
Parking available
Parking at Hauptmarkt, Neumarkt, and Topfmarkt; two short-term parking spaces in front of the museum.
The museum is located a few steps from the Hauptmarkt on Kirchplatz behind the Marienkirche.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Museum shop
Sale of publications; reference library with over 3000 volumes.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| Audio guide | yes |
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Tours in the museum and in the storage facility with registration. Workshops for daycare and schools, including on the city model and cloth-making. A virtual tour is available online. |
