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Topic DDR

Ask Dr. Wolle

Storming the Stasi: Memories of 15 January 1990

Topic DDR

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.

GDR mass organisation

The Society for Sport and Technology

6 Aug 2020 by Jörn Kleinhardt

What began in 1952 as a mass organisation for the leisure activities of young people increasingly developed in a paramilitary direction. From the mid-1970s, the Society for Sport and Technology (GST) called itself the »socialist military organisation of the GDR« and took on the military education of adolescents.

GDR History

Dederon - a GDR synthetic fibre prevails

Topic DDR

14 May 2020

Folds well, doesn’t crease, dries quickly and is versatile - these attributes perfectly describe the synthetic fibre Dederon, which was used to make shirts, aprons, bags and tights for the masses in the GDR since the 1960s.

Günter Höhne writes

Giftware from the Traffic Police

5 Sep 2019 by Admin

Günter Höhne recalls the traffic police, whose members were also colloquially called “white mice” and enjoyed mingling with ordinary citizens. Even with their own souvenirs and giftware.

Object of the Month

Portable TV “Combi-Vision 310”

22 May 2019 by Admin

The portable television “Combi-Vision 310” wasn't the first of its kind. After the K67 never made it into large-scale production, the TV “Combi-Vision 310” filled a market gap in the DDR.

Günter Höhne writes

From Duckling to Swan: „Moccadolly“

6 Feb 2019 by Admin

The journalist and expert for DDR product design Günter Höhne writes for the DDR Museum blog. This time he is taking a closer look at the DDR coffee maker “Moccadolly”.

Günter Höhne writes

DDR Design PRAKTI Camera

23 Jan 2019 by Admin

The journalist and expert for DDR product design Günter Höhne writes for the blog DDR Museum. This time he is taking a closer look at the camera PRAKTI from 1960 which was produced in Dresden.

News

#MuseumWeek: A Week for Museums on Twitter

8 May 2018 by Admin

For seven days, thousands of cultural institutions around the world shared impressions from their daily life. During this week, the DDR Museum reached more than 3.1 million people with its tweets (translated by Elizabeth Moye).

Interview

"Die Normalität des Absurden" Interview with Dr. Heinz Schneider

18 May 2017 by Melanie Alperstaedt

A few weeks ago I had read the book „Die Normalität des Absurden“ from Heinz Schneider with great interest. I was pleasantly surprised to get the opportunity to interview him in person. Heinz Schneider and his wife Thea Schneider kindly offered to welcome me in their lovely flat in Mahlow! Here is the transcript of our conversation for you to read.

Architecture

Berlin - the Socialist city

Topic DDR

10 May 2017 by Praktikant

After the Second World War, more than 30% of the housing stock, 85% of classrooms and 80% of hospital rooms in Berlin were destroyed. What was to rise up from the ruins of the capital? The Socialist Unity Party (SED) saw a chance to include the rebirth of the city into the newly founded German Democratic Republic.

History

Topic traffic: The Trabant

Topic DDR

2 May 2017 by Admin

The undisputed symbol of everyday life in the GDR was the Trabant, which means »companion« in German, and indeed the automobile accompanied the lives of many GDR citizens like a faithful friend - first as a dream, because you had to wait up to 16 years for a new car, then as a status symbol, a vehicle to drive and a hobby.

Shops and department stores in the GDR

»Exquisit« and »Delikat« shops

Topic DDR

15 Dec 2016

»Exquisit« and »Delikat« shops were opened in the 1960s to meet the »upmarket consumer needs« of the GDR population. In contrast to the Intershops, it was possible for the population to buy high-quality products in these shops with the country’s own currency, the GDR mark.

Shops and Department Stores in the DDR

The Intershop Retail Chain

Topic DDR

1 Dec 2016 by Jörn Kleinhardt

Even today, many people remember the smell of the Intershops. Comparable to duty-free shops, the Intershops were aimed at travellers and were initially mainly found at railway stations, airports and other transit points. Until the end of the DDR, there were branches all over the country where the DDR's own population could also shop.

Collection

Shopping in the DDR: Konsum

30 Nov 2016 by Admin

In order to satisfy their daily consumer needs, the citizens of the DDR / Soviet occupation zone had a number of possibilities to do their shopping. Already in December of 1945, a consumer cooperative with the simple name of “Konsum” was established. Only three years later, almost 300 independent consumer cooperatives existed in different cities.

Shops and department stores in the GDR

The »Handelsorganisation« (HO)

Topic DDR

17 Nov 2016

The East German »Handelsorganisation« (HO) or »Trade Organisation« was established shortly before the founding of the GDR. It was the state counterpart to the privately run consumer cooperative chain »Konsum« and, in addition to retail, also included a network of restaurants and hotels.

Shops and department stores in the GDR

The »Konsumgenossenschaften«

Topic DDR

10 Nov 2016

The so-called »Konsum« shops sold goods for daily use. The term »Konsum« was the popular abbreviation for »Konsumgenossenschaften« or »consumer cooperatives«, which had been founded in 1945. Just a few years later, the Konsum retail chain shaped the shopping scene in the GDR. We show you thematic objects from our collection.

Collection

Fuel for the DDR – the brand Minol and the Minol Pirol

19 Oct 2016 by Admin

In order to keep motor vehicles sustained with fuel, an area-covering net of gas stations is required. As a result of the Second World War, the existing net of gas stations was divided along the different occupation zones after the West German brand „Gasoline“ was running all gas stations in all of the occupation zones in the beginning.

Educational Program

Our Karl-Marx-Allee Tour

6 Jul 2016 by Admin

Today we would like to introduce to you one of our tours, which of course is also suitable for school groups. The Karl-Marx-Allee Tour is a combined tour, meaning that it will start with a one-hour visit of the DDR Museum, followed by a two-hour walk along the Alexanderplatz as well as the socialist boulevard.

GDR history

The currency of the GDR over time

Topic DDR

23 Jun 2016 by Jörn Kleinhardt

With the currency reform in the three western occupation zones in 1948, it also became necessary to introduce their own means of payment in the Soviet occupation zone, on whose territory the German Democratic Republic was founded in 1949. The article explains and shows the different currencies in the GDR until its end in 1990.

Collection

The magazine "Sputnik" as a paper-based ambassador of the USSR

8 Jun 2016 by Admin

The Soviet magazine "Sputnik" (Russian for companion) has been published by the state-owned news agency "Nowosti" since January 1967. It was designed as a digest of the Soviet press and was not only adressed to Russians but also to readers from other socialist and western foreign countries.

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