Optical Museum Jena

The development of the city Jena to the centre of the optical industries since the mid-19th-century is integrated in the exhibition, connected with the lifeworks of Ernst Abbe, Carl Zeiss and Otto Schott.

At the turn from 19th to the 20th century, the staff of the Carl Zeiss company began to collect optical instruments.

In June 1922, the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung established the Optical Museum; the exhibition was located in the neighbouring Volkshaus (community hall).

The collections were reserved for a selected group of people for purposes of research and not open to the public.

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the death of Carl Zeiss in December 1988, the historical Zeiss-Workshop (circa 1860) was opened as part of the Optical Museum in the neighboured Volkshaus.