Museum Tuch + Technik Neumünster

About the museum

The museum's roots go back to 1914, when Neumünster founded a municipal museum based on a private collection of silver, regional costumes, household goods, and prehistoric finds. In the following decades, textile archaeology and technology moved into the focus; during the Nazi era the research was exhibited in a specially built costume museum on the Klosterinsel. A bombing raid destroyed the building in 1944, and a large part of the rewoven textiles was lost. After reconstruction, the museum reopened in 1954.

From 1962 it presented itself as a textile museum on Parkstraße, while a friends' association collected historic textile machinery from the 1980s onward. In 2000 the city council decided on a new building, in 2002 the old textile museum closed, and in 2004 the city and the friends' association founded the Stiftung Museum, Kunst und Kultur (foundation for museum, art, and culture), in which both collections were merged.

On October 13, 2007, the Museum Tuch + Technik opened its new building on the Kleinflecken directly next to the Stadthalle. On about 2,000 square meters, of which about 300 are for changing exhibitions, the permanent exhibition links the technology of cloth making from prehistory to industry with the history of Neumünster, which developed from a Geest village into the largest industrial center in Holstein. Among the most impressive objects is a carding set more than 20 meters long; fabrics for the museum shop are still woven on hand looms today.

Highlights

• Three-card carding set more than 20 meters long from industrial cloth production
• Hand weaving workshop with products for the museum shop
• Hands-on stations for spinning, weaving, and examining fibers under a microscope
• City history of Neumünster from a Geest village to an industrial city
• Public Sunday tour at 14:00
• Inclusive media guide in plain language, sign language, and as audio description

Permanent exhibitions

• Im Laufe der Zeit – Textil- und Stadtgeschichten aus Neumünster – Four time periods from prehistory to 1991 link the development of cloth making – from manual work through water and horse power to steam and electricity – with life in the Flecken (market village) and in the industrial city of Neumünster.

Founded

1914

Operated by

Stiftung Museum, Kunst und Kultur der Stadt Neumünster

Director

Astrid Frevert

Admission & discounts

With a valid AKN train ticket, €1 off admission. Audio guide free against a deposit.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours
• Easy-to-read materials
• Audio description

Wheelchair-accessible elevators, plenty of seating, and mobile seating, standing, and walking aids; wheelchair-accessible restroom in the entrance area. Free inclusive media guide via QR code at 20 stations in plain language, sign language, and as an audio file for people with visual impairments. Some exhibits are intended to be touched. Tours for people with visual or mobility impairments and with dementia on request. Assistance dogs allowed.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations
• Kids’ birthday parties

Free museum rally for ages 7 to 15, children's audio guide (45 minutes), illustrated children's guide with Ella the moth for children up to age 7, and a family backpack with puzzles (partly against a deposit). Children's birthday parties with programs for ages 8 or 10 and up, plus a Children's Technology Academy and workshops.

Getting there & parking

In Neumünster, follow the signs for Zentrum, Stadthalle, or museum. The museum is connected to the Stadthalle by a bridge; the entrance is in the Stadthalle.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Restaurant
• Museum shop
• Coat check
• Lockers

Museum café and restaurant "Johann & Amalia" in the Stadthalle (daily 9:00–17:00). Museum shop with handwoven goods from the museum weaving workshop, accessible even without a museum visit. Coat check and lockers (€1 deposit) on the first floor of the Stadthalle.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Corporate events

Museum hall for conferences, readings, lectures, workshops (up to 20 people), and family celebrations, also as a special opening outside opening hours; catering through the restaurant Johann & Amalia.

Plan your visit