With free admission

District museums take visitors back to the time of occupation

The district museum in Floridsdorf commemorates the narrow footbridge that had to replace the destroyed Danube bridge for a year.

(Bild: Bezirksmuseum Floridsdorf)

80 years after the end of the war and 70 years after the State Treaty, this year's District Museum Day on Sunday is dedicated to the ten years in between: With free admission, visitors can trace the history of their own neighborhood during the occupation.

This year's District Museum Day is dedicated to the ten years of occupied Vienna between 1945 and 1955. Each of the 23 museums offers its own journey through time into the past of its home district on Sunday between 10 am and 4 pm: in the Innere Stadt, for example, the focus is on the reconstruction of Vienna's landmarks, in Neubau it is about the radio broadcasts of the time, in Ottakring contemporary witness videos can be seen.

23 museums get down to business
For City Councillor for Culture Veronica Kaup-Hasler, the district museums are not just about institutions for district history, but a special museum experience in general: "They don't just preserve history, they make it come alive - from a local perspective and with a direct connection to people's everyday lives." Brigitte Neichl, President of the District Museums, also sees the Grätzel museums as an ideal starting point for delving deep into Vienna's history.

Bread only for cards - everyday life in Vienna 80 years ago

(Bild: Bezirksmuseum Hernals)

The individual museums are once again putting on special events this year: concerts, lectures and readings complement the local exhibitions - it's worth taking a look at the program. The Chimney Sweep Museum and the Circus and Clown Museum are also taking part in the action day in special exhibitions and shedding light on the history of their subject areas during the occupation. The District Museum Day is therefore also the perfect prelude to the upcoming major exhibition on the occupation period at the Wien Museum.

A visit to several museums is not only worthwhile because the occupation period differed significantly depending on the occupying power - American, British, French or Russian - in the individual districts, but also because the popular stamp pass is available again this year. It can be collected from the museums on Sunday. It can be filled in until June 20 during the "Wiener Lenz" weeks of the district museums with many other events and special program items - and then exchanged for small gifts.