Württembergisches Psychiatriemuseum Zwiefalten/Bad Schussenried
Museum on the history of psychiatry in Württemberg in the former cemetery chapel of the Münsterklinik in Zwiefalten, with a branch in Bad Schussenried.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
In 1812, Württemberg's first psychiatric institution was established in Zwiefalten, in the rooms of a former Benedictine monastery. The Württembergisches Psychiatriemuseum opened on October 10, 2003, at the site of the state's oldest clinic. The concept was developed by the cultural scientist Martin Rexer; the interior was designed by the architect Andrea Schulz; project management lay with Thomas Müller, head of the research unit for the history of medicine at the ZfP (Center for Psychiatry).
The museum is housed in a building that once served as the cemetery chapel and later as the clinic's pathology department. The permanent exhibition sheds light on around 200 years of psychiatry in Württemberg: everyday life in the institution with work, garden duties and bourgeois institutional culture; treatment and therapy methods; and individual fates of patients, including the painter Albert Speck and Josef Demetz, who was resettled from South Tyrol. Some 1,000 objects, patient records, photographs and patient art make up the collection.
A second permanent exhibition presents the museum as a historical space for psychiatry in the former monastery of Schussenried. In 2015 the museum received a special prize from the Lotto-Stiftung Baden-Württemberg; in 2023 it was admitted to the Museumsverband Baden-Württemberg (Museum Association of Baden-Württemberg). It is run by the Zentrum für Psychiatrie Südwürttemberg (Center for Psychiatry South Württemberg).
Highlights
- Permanent exhibition on 200 years of psychiatry in Württemberg
- Institutional everyday life, work and bourgeois institutional culture
- Around 1,000 objects, patient records and photographs
- Life stories such as that of the painter Albert Speck
- Second site in the former monastery at Schussenried
- Free admission
Permanent exhibitions
- Dauerausstellung Psychiatrie in Württemberg – Two centuries of psychiatric history: everyday life in the institution, therapy methods, institutional culture and individual patient stories, shown through objects, files and photos.
- Psychiatriehistorischer Raum im Kloster Schussenried – Second permanent exhibition of the museum on the development of psychiatry, set within the exhibition of the State Palaces and Gardens of Baden-Württemberg in the former monastery.
- Founded
- 2003
- Operated by
- Zentrum für Psychiatrie Südwürttemberg
- Director
- Prof. Dr. Thomas Müller
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
| Groups | –Guided tour on request: €50 for up to 15 people, €3 for each additional person. |
|---|---|
| Guided tour on request (up to 15 people) | €50€3 for each additional person; duration approx. one hour |
Admission free.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
The nearest station is Riedlingen, on the Ulm–Sigmaringen line; from there take the regional bus to Zwiefalten.
By car
Free parking · 150 m to the entrance
Free rental car park at the Rentalhalle (Mauerstraße 1); the museum is signposted from there.
By car via the B 312 (Riedlingen–Reutlingen); for satnav, the museum recommends entering "Mauerstraße 1 (Rentalhalle), Zwiefalten".
Get directionsAmenities & dining
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes · approx. 60 min |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Guided tours on weekdays are arranged after registration at 07373 10-3223. Short information about the museum is also available on the website in English, French and Spanish. |
