The central museum of Sorbian history and culture, housed in the Salzhaus at Bautzen's Ortenburg – with traditional costumes, customs, literature, and art.
From October 15, 2025
The exhibition traces the eventful history of the museum – from the first collections through dissolution and a new beginning to the planned Sorbisches Wissensforum; no end date has been given.
The origins of the collection go back to 1856, when the Sorbian scholarly society Maćica Serbska founded a section for antiquities. For the 1896 exhibition of Saxon crafts and applied arts in Dresden, the linguist and folklorist Ernst Mucke gathered numerous folk-culture objects that considerably expanded the holdings. The museum, founded in 1900 according to its own account, was given its own exhibition rooms in 1904 in the newly opened Wendisches Haus on Bautzen's Lauengraben.
After the Nazis banned public Sorbian life, the Wendisches Museum was dissolved in 1941/42 and its holdings absorbed into the Stadtmuseum Bautzen; the Wendisches Haus was destroyed in 1945. Part of the collection was on display from 1957 to 1971 at the Museum für sorbische Volkskunst in Hoyerswerda. In the 1970s the museum found its current home in the Salzhaus on the Ortenburg, built in 1782 and converted into a courthouse in 1869; since 1989 it has operated as an independent institution.
Today the museum, run by the district of Bautzen, holds some 35,000 objects, including the most important collection of Sorbian traditional costumes with pieces from the 18th century, the most extensive collection of Sorbian fine art, and holdings of posters, photographs, and written documents. The permanent exhibition on three floors spans the period from Slavic settlement to the present. In the long term, the museum is to move together with the Sorbisches Institut into a new Sorbisches Wissensforum (Sorbian Knowledge Forum) on the Lauengraben.
| Adults | €5 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €2.50Children age 6 and over, school students, university students and apprentices, people with severe disabilities, military and civilian service members, holders of the Bautzen district social pass, the Saxon family pass, the youth leader card (Jugendleitercard), the Saxon volunteer card, and the Bavarian volunteer card (Cham district) |
| Children & teens | €2.50free up to age 5 · Children free until their 6th birthday, reduced admission after that. |
| Seniors | –No senior discount listed. |
| Visitors with disabilities | €2.50companion free · Reduced admission for people with severe disabilities; companions free. |
| Students & apprentices | €2.50Reduced admission for school students, university students, and apprentices. |
| Groups | €4.50 per personGroup admission €4.50, reduced €2 per person; minimum group size not specified. School classes from the Bautzen district and Sorbian schools free. |
| Families | €12Family ticket for 2 adults with one or more children. |
Guided tour €2 per person in addition to admission (reduced €1.50). Photo and video permit €3. Annual pass €30. Audio and video guides free. Free admission for, among others, members of ICOM, the Museumsbund (German Museums Association), and the friends' association; admission was free on International Museum Day in 2025 and 2026.
All floors can be reached by elevator, and all exhibition rooms are wheelchair-accessible; accessible restroom with baby changing facilities on the ground floor. Tours for people with disabilities featuring tactile objects (costume parts, touch boxes) as well as tours for people with dementia by prior arrangement. Guide dogs allowed.
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 5 |
|---|---|
| Family ticket | €12 · Family ticket for 2 adults with one or more children. |
Free video guide for children (ages 4–12) in German, English, and Upper Sorbian; holiday programs and creative workshops (e.g., pottery from age 7); exhibition area "Kinderzeit früher" (Childhood in Former Times). Strollers allowed, baby changing room on the ground floor (accessible restroom).
Kornmarktcenter/Lauengraben
Bus to the Kornmarktcenter/Lauengraben stop, then via Heringstraße and Burglehn to the Ortenburg; from Bautzen station on foot via Bahnhofstraße and Postplatz
No on-site parking at the museum.
Parking is prohibited throughout the Ortenburg grounds; bicycle parking in front of the museum entrance.
By car via the A4, exit 89 Bautzen-West, then follow signs toward the Ortenburg.
Get directionsSmall museum café area with drinks in the foyer. Online shop with exhibition catalogs, postcards, and Easter products. Coat check and lockers; backpacks and bags larger than A3 must be checked.
Up to 160 guests.
Banquet hall (170 m², 80 to a maximum of 160 people) and museum education room (84 m², about 30 people) for private and corporate events; room rental €75–150, outside opening hours plus a staff surcharge of €10 per hour, plus 20% if furnishings are used. No rentals to political parties or political groups.
Inquiries & details| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| Audio guide | yes (HSB, DE, EN, FR, PL, RU, CS) |
| School programs | yes |
| Photography | Permitted for private purposes without flash with a paid photo permit (€3); special exhibitions have their own rules |
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