Blog | DDR Museum

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. Read more

From the collection

From the collection

»Kaffee Mix« and coffee crisis

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. Read more

From the collection

From the collection

Alcohol in the GDR

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. Read more

From the collection

From the collection

On the way to world class – the 1-megabit memory chip

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. Read more

From the Collection

The magazine »FF Dabei«, a popular companion for the TV programme

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«. Read more

From the collection

From the collection

Civilian travel with Deutsche Lufthansa and Interflug

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. Read more

From the collection

From the collection

Creative building with Formo and PEBE bricks

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. Read more

From the collection

From the Collection

Pictorial: »GDR in Objects 1949-1990. Leisure, Culture, Travel«

With the second volume of the trilogy »GDR in Objects 1949-1990«, the DDR Museum gives a unique insight into the world's largest museum DDR collection. Read more

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From the collection

DDR in Objects 1949-1989

The Art Directors' 11 Favourites of the Collection Volume I

Art director Joris Buiks presents his eleven personal favourite objects from the eleven chapters of our first collection volume »GDR in Objects 1949-1990. Daily Life, Home, Consumption«. Read more

From the collection

From the Collection

10 GDR Objects from Dresden

Dresden was one of the economic and cultural centres of the GDR. The collection of the DDR Museum contains numerous objects that reflect the historical development of Dresden. Ten of them are presented in this article. Read more

From the collection

GDR in Objects 1949-1990

The Head of Collections' 11 Favourites of the Collection Volume I

In this article, the head of collections Jörn Kleinhardt presents his eleven personal favourites from the eleven chapters of the first collection volume »GDR in Objects 1949-1990. Daily Life, Home, Consumption«. Read more

From the collection

From the collection

The Final Division of Berlin – The Erection of the Wall on 13 August 1961

Two months before the Wall was erected, Walter Ulbricht denied the intention to build a Wall at a press conference. On the night of 12-13 August 1961, construction of the Wall began. In this article we show thematically appropriate objects from our collection. Read more

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GDR mass organisation

The Society for Sport and Technology

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. Read more

From the collection

From the Collection

Pictorial: »DDR in Objects 1949-1990. Daily Life, Home, Consumption«

With the first volume of the trilogy »GDR in Objects 1949-1990« the DDR Museum gives a unique insight into the world's largest museum DDR collection. Read more

From the collection

Object of the Month

Wooden Toy Truck

The object of the month March/April 2020 is the wooden toy truck by the PGH »Friedrich Fröbel« Werdau. The wooden toy appeals by its plain and elegant design as well as its high stability and durability. Read more

Object of the Month

Board Game »Merry Travels — Spejbl and Hurvinek«

The object of the month is the board game »Merry Travels — Spejbl and Hurvinek« and is based on the well-known marionettes Spejbl and Hurvinek of the Czech puppeteer Josef Skupa. Read more

From the collection

From the collection

Barracked People's Police and NVA

Uniforms, steel helmets, brochures, certificates and pocket calendars are just a few of the many objects from the collection of the DDR Museum that tell the story of the Barracked People's Police (KVP) and its successor, the National People's Army (NVA). Head of collection Jörn Kleinhardt uses historical artefacts to give an overview of the NVA from the beginning to the end of the DDR. Read more

Günter Höhne writes

DDR-Design: Cool Table Fans

The journalist and expert for DDR product design Günter Höhne writes for the blog DDR Museum. In this article he is taking a closer look at the design of table fans in the DDR. Read more

Object of the Month

Magazine „UdSSR im Bau“ / „Sowjetunion“

The object of the month August is the 1930 by Maxim Gorky established magazine “UdSSR im Bau” which, in 1950, was renamed “Sowjetunion“. Well preserved issues are rare and constitute a highly informative historical primary source. Read more

From the collection

Object of the month

Fort Laramie from the VEB Holzspielwaren Steinach

With the Fort Laramie, children could live out their passion that arose with the film adaptation of the Karl May novels in the 60s. Hobby groups of the so-called Indianistik were officially active already from the mid-50s. Read more