21 Mar 2022
To this day, many people are familiar with the various products of »AKA ELECTRIC« and even still use them. Smaller brands and companies were gathered under the umbrella brand until the end of the GDR. We show a selection of household gadgets from the collection of the DDR Museum.
10 Mar 2022 by Jörn Kleinhardt
The philosopher and communist theorist Karl Marx (1818-1883) died long before the founding of the GDR, but his theses and ideas significantly influenced the socialist state as well as its ideology. This issue of the collection blog focuses on Marx's work and his impact on the GDR.
4 Mar 2022
The Leipzig Trade Fair is far older than the GDR could ever become. In GDR times, it took place annually in spring and autumn and put the Saxon city in a state of excitement. We show you an excerpt of the objects that promoted the fair location and the fair itself.
17 Nov 2021 by Vanessa Jasmin Lemke
The Sandman is the evening companion of many children before bedtime. Since 1959, he has been taking them on adventures around the world and to faraway galaxies. The little man is one of the GDR inventions that continue to delight young and old to this day.
12 Nov 2021 by Vanessa Jasmin Lemke
Since 2016, visitors to the DDR Museum can have a look at an originally furnished prefabricated GDR flat of the type »WBS 70«. These flats promised great comfort in contrast to the old buildings. Living in the »Platte« from the 1970s onwards therefore also included having one's own bathroom, which can be seen recreated in the DDR Museum.
25 Oct 2021
In the 1960s, the department store chains »Konsument« and »Centrum Warenhaus« were established in the GDR. The two department stores were intended to satisfy the changing consumer needs of the population. Here we show you thematic objects from our collection.
20 Oct 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
Over the years, the Deutsche Film AG, DEFA for short, has created numerous film classics. In this article we present a few selected films and show the accompanying film booklets from our collection.
1 Oct 2021 by Melanie Alperstaedt
They are almost rarities of the GDR era: the coloured DEFA picture books. Also known as slide roll films, the picture books were widely distributed in East German homes from the 1950s to the end of the 1970s.
1 Oct 2021 by Vanessa Jasmin Lemke
At 368 metres, it is still the tallest building in Germany: the Berlin TV Tower. In this blog post, we present the history of this world-famous building, which was opened in the capital of the GDR on 3 October 1969, as well as objects from our collection on the subject.
7 Sep 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
There was no stinginess with decorations and medals in the GDR. In fact, every field of society had its own awards. We present a small selection in this article.
24 Aug 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
The »Interkosmos« programme of the then Soviet Union was intended to advance scientific research vis-à-vis the USA and also made it possible for other nations to fly into space. Sigmund Jähn was the first German to fly into space.
27 Jul 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
The Society for German-Soviet Friendship (DSF) was the second largest mass organisation in the GDR and was intended to counteract the anti-Soviet attitude of the population after the end of the war. The DSF was active in cultural work with numerous activities.
26 Jul 2021
One of the most sensational products of the GDR was the »Kaffee Mix«, also called »Erich's Krönung«. In this blog post, we take a closer look at the history of coffee in the GDR.
22 Jul 2021
In the GDR, people liked to drink a lot. Alcohol was not in short supply, and the shelves in the shops were well stocked. Today, the bottles are piled up in the collection of the DDR Museum.
13 Jul 2021 by Sören Marotz
The GDR missed the way to become a world leader in memory chip technology. In 1988, the 1-megabit microchip »U61000« was presented to the Politburo – while the West's 4-megabit chip was already in development.
6 Jul 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
The Baltic Sea island of Rügen is known for its long and fine sandy beaches and is the largest island in Germany. The sights attract many holidaymakers every year.
10 Feb 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
The official television programme in the GDR was very limited during its existence. Due to the limited range of media, there was also only one programme guide. Until 1969 it was called »Funk und Fernsehen der DDR« (FF) and was then renamed »FF dabei«.
4 Feb 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
On 4 February 1956, Deutsche Lufthansa opened its scheduled flight operations on the route between East Berlin and Warsaw. Two years later, the airline Interflug was founded. Our collection contains numerous objects from the 33 years of Interflug.
24 Jan 2021 by Jörn Kleinhardt
Creative building and corresponding system toys have always inspired many children. While in the West one could indulge one's play instinct with Playmobil and LEGO, in the DDR there were also two established building systems with PEBE and Formo. The original idea of plug-in bricks goes back to the anchor bricks developed in Rudolstadt (Thuringia) in the 19th century.
15 Jan 2021 by Dr. Stefan Wolle
At the turn of the year 1989/90, the DDR was in a strange state of suspense. The Wall had been open for eight weeks. The old order was dissolving, a new order did not yet exist. The weightlessness of free fall prevailed. It was only a question of time when the impact would occur.