The collections of the German Historical Museum

The Collection Applied Arts consists of different types of materials and genres which are as diverse as glass, ceramic, silver and goldsmith's art, pewterware and iron castings, lacquered and enameled boxes or cans, ivory carvings, miniatures, furniture, and modern designs. The stretch of time covered by the objects of the collection starts in the Middle Ages and reaches to the present, from the Roman glass urn to the Panton chair, from the Frankish silver clasp to the Stiletto lamp. And yet, only those objects are collected that agree with the concept of the German Historical Museum: objects with personal or historic relevance and pieces of art that tell a story about the social and economic lives of the cultures of past epochs. While the German Historical Museum established an independent collection of applied arts right after the beginning of its collecting activity, the former Museum for German History included applied arts in the broad complex of "material culture." In 1990, this collection was divided in to the collection of Everyday Life Culture and Applied Arts.

The collection of Plastic Art I consists of all sculptures made or designed before 1900. Later sculptural works belong to the collection of Art II. The majority of the sculptures are figured representations or portrait busts: figures of saints, monument portraits of famous scientists, artists, and statesmen or stateswomen. Along with the original sculptures, a large number of plaster casts – among them numerous death masks – are part of the collection. These casts originate from the late 19th or the early 20th century and were already collected by the Museum for German History. Later, the German Historical Museum continued with this tradition and also has copies made of very important portrait busts which have found their place in other museums. Owing to a generous donation of the private collector Gerhard Campe, Plastic Art I is able to emphasize one more field: almost 50 portrayals of King Friedrich II of Prussia in different sizes as busts, reliefs or bronze statues, made of iron, porcelain, or marble.

See also a small selection of our holdings.