12 Museums to Explore in Thuringia

A majestic palace upon a rocky hill on the south-western slope of the Thuringian Forest, Germany. It was the summer residence of the Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen and is surrounded by 160 hectares of English landscape garden, which contain, among other objects of interest, a cavern 300 metres long, through which flows a large and rapid stream. It was one of the famous attractions in this area and also it gives an idea about the ancient lining style of the Dukes.

The Angermuseum is the first city museum in Erfurt. It was ceremoniously opened on June 27, 1886, and is housed in the building that used to house the public weighing machine in Erfurt am Anger. The scales were necessary at that time so that incoming trade goods could be cleared accordingly. Originally only the gallery on the first floor was used for the museum. The building was built between 1706 and 1711 according to plans by the architect Johann Maximilian von Welsch.

The German Optical Museum Jena is a science and technology museum. It displays optical instruments from eight centuries. It gives a technical and cultural-historical survey of the development of optical instruments. With changing special exhibitions and extensive educational programs, the Optical Museum was popular at this time as an educational location for school groups, tourists, and the population of the city of Jena.

Goethes Gartenhaus in the park on the Ilm in Weimar was a place of residence and work of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Since 1998 it belongs as part of the ensemble " Classical Weimar " for UNESCO - World Heritage Site. The house is possibly a winegrower's house from the 16th century - a time when viticulture still played a major role in Weimar. In its time, the slope was more of an orchard or vegetable growing area. Today the garden house is set up as a museum.

The Lutherhaus in Eisenach is one of the oldest preserved half-timbered houses in Thuringia. According to tradition, Martin Luther lived here with the Cotta family during his school days from 1498 to 1501. It has been one of the most important historic Reformation sites since the 19th century and, as such, was designated a "European cultural heritage site" in 2011. The Lutherhaus has been run as a cultural history museum since 1956.

Museum Burg Posterstein is a hilltop castle on a rocky outcrop on the right bank of sprat in Posterstein in Altenburger Land in Thuringia. The hilltop castle emerged from a small ministerial castle from the late 12th century that was built over in the Renaissance period. It now houses a history museum with changing exhibitions & events.

Museum Schloss Wilhelmsburg in the town of Schmalkalden was a secondary residence of the Landgrave of Hesse. It is one of the most important Renaissance complexes in Central Germany, which has hardly undergone any structural changes to date and has been preserved in almost its original state. One of the majestic buildings in this area which was famous for its architectural works.

The Museum Neues Weimar in Weimar is a museum of the Weimar Classic Foundation for contemporary art. It was the first museum on this subject in the former GDR. The museum initially housed the art collection of the Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach; later it exhibited works from the Weimar School of Painting. From 1875 the forecourt of the museum was adorned by the Vimaria fountain created by Robert Härtel.

This is the pre-Christian ritual site dates from the 6th century BC and is one of the best-preserved find complexes of its kind in central Europe. It is now an open-air museum that includes a shallow lake, was a supra-regional cult site from the Hallstatt Period to the Migration Age. It is the largest known Iron Age cult site in Central Europe. There are so many things to see in and around this place which shows light to the ancient period.

The Schillerhaus Weimar is a museum operated by the Klassik Stiftung Weimar in the former home of Friedrich Schiller in Weimar. In 1988 the new building of the Schiller Museum was built behind the residential building, which is now used for special and changing exhibitions of the Weimar Classic Foundation. As part of the “ Classic Weimar ” ensemble, it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998.

Heidecksburg Palace is the former residence of the princes of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt in Thuringia Rudolstadt and lies, the cityscape dominant, some 60 meters above the old town. Today the Thuringian State Museum Heidecksburg and the Thuringian State Archives Rudolstadt are housed in the castle.

The Weimar Haus is a private, commercial museum on the history of the city of Weimar from the Stone Age to the Weimar Classic. The individual epochs are presented in dioramas by wax figures with elaborate light installations and appropriate background noise. The museum is located on Schillerstrasse. In the Weimar House, tourists can also rent pocket computers as electronic signposts with explanations for a city ​​tour.