Schwäbisches Handwerkermuseum

About the museum

The museum is housed in the former lower Brunnenmeisterhaus (waterworks master's house) at the Rotes Tor. The Augsburg city waterworks master Caspar Walter had the house built in the 18th century; together with the neighboring water towers, it was an important part of the city's water supply. When the waterworks at the Hochablass went into operation in 1879, the building lost its purpose, served from then on only as a warehouse, and fell increasingly into disrepair.

In the 1970s, the building was in very poor condition. The Handwerkskammer für Schwaben took it over and, together with guilds and businesses, restored it in the early 1980s. On June 29, 1985, in the year of Augsburg's 2000th anniversary, the Schwäbisches Handwerkermuseum opened here – as a gift from the chamber to the city. The initiators gathered tools, machines, and entire workshop furnishings from all over Swabia, often from businesses that were just closing down.

Today the museum shows reconstructed workshops of traditional and more recent craft professions with their tools and products, as well as testimonies of guild history. Since 2019, it has been located within the UNESCO World Heritage Site Water Management System of Augsburg. For the 40th anniversary in 2025, an 18th-century clockwork restored by the museum director, a photo exhibition on the history of the building, and an audio guide were added. According to the chamber, more than a million people have visited the museum since its opening.

Highlights

• Historic craftsmen's workshops furnished in faithful detail
• Guild signs and testimonies of guild history
• Restored 18th-century clockwork
• Water wheel with trip hammer in the courtyard
• Location in the UNESCO World Heritage Site directly next to the water towers at the Rotes Tor

Permanent exhibitions

• Historische Handwerkerwerkstätten – Furnished workshops of numerous Swabian craft professions with original tools, machines, and products, complemented by items on guild history.

Founded

1985

Operated by

Handwerkskammer für Schwaben

Director

Stefan Brunnhuber

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission is free.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: not available
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: not available
• 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 museum is not wheelchair-accessible and has no public restroom.

Kids & families

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

Getting there & parking

Entrance from the street Beim Rabenbad through the inner courtyard of the Heilig-Geist-Spital.

Amenities & dining

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

Events & venue rental

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

Plan your visit