Alpines Museum Deutscher Alpenverein

Description

On the Praterinsel in München the Alpine Museum des Deutschen Alpenvereins (DAV) brings together a library, archive and collections on the history of alpinism and functions as a cultural centre for member networks and the interested public. It houses the joint Historical Alpine Archive of the Deutschen Alpenvereins (DAV), des Österreichischen Alpenvereins (ÖAV) und des Alpenvereins Südtirol (AVS).

The location on the Praterinsel stems from early considerations by the joint German and Austrian alpine clubs; concrete planning prevailed from the beginning of the 20th century. The city of München provided the former Café Isarlust for this purpose; after conversion work the museum opened in 1911. In the following decades the building underwent several extensions, gained its own alpine plant garden and experienced wartime destruction and reconstruction phases in the 20th century, after which it was used at times as an administrative site. A comprehensive reopening took place in 1996; in 2024 the house was reopened after a major renovation and given a new curatorial orientation.

The renewed building relies on clear sequences of space, brighter exhibition areas and a stronger connection to the urban side. The foyer opens onto the library, reading lounge and Café Isarlust; the house also includes a representative ceremonial hall and terraces opening onto the park. Historic architectural elements were revealed and restored; the materiality and interior fittings, with Nagelfluh, rough-textured concrete and wooden fixtures, refer to the alpine origins of the subjects. The park has been preserved and includes areas planted with alpine species. The building is listed as a historic monument.

Archive and collections form the core of the museum: written records, photographs, posters, films and objects document around 200 years of club and alpine history. Significant holdings have been digitised and can be researched in the joint database of DAV, ÖAV and AVS. Exhibits include reliefs of important mountain researchers and artists as well as watercolours and drawings from 19th-century expeditions. The holdings are complemented by pieces of equipment, hut inventory and personal papers.

The library, whose core collection goes back to a donation from the early 20th century, is regarded as an extensive specialised library on mountaineering with more than 70,000 items and historical titles dating back to the 18th century; an adjacent reading lounge offers views over the Isar.

The museum also uses its collections and archives for scholarly examination of sensitive topics, such as the exclusion of women and the history of antisemitism within the association’s structures; decisions such as the exclusion of a section in 1924 are also documented.