Museum Judenplatz: Medieval Jewish Vienna and Memorial

The first Jewish Museum in Vienna was founded in 1893 by the "Society for the Collection and Preservation of Artistic and Historical Memorials of Jewry." It was the first of its kind in the world and focused on Jewish culture and history in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The first Jewish Museum in Vienna, established by the "Society for the Collection and Preservation of Artistic and Historical Memorials of Jewry," officially opened its doors to the public in 1895. Its collection also reflected the political discourse on Zionism at the time.

By 1913, the first Jewish Museum in Vienna had already moved its premises several times. It relocated into the Talmud-Thora-School in Leopoldstadt, by which time its collection had grown to 3,400 objects.

Immediately after the Anschluss by Nazi Germany in 1938, the first Jewish Museum in Vienna was closed. Its valuable contents were subsequently distributed among other museums, including the Museum of Ethnology and the Natural History Museum.

Following the closure of the Jewish Museum in 1938, the Natural History Museum utilized some of the confiscated artifacts to mount an anti-Semitic exhibition titled "The Corporeal and Spiritual Properties of the Jews."

In the early 1950s, the majority of the Jewish museum's stock, which had been confiscated by the Nazis, was restituted to the Jewish community of Vienna (Israelitische Kultusgemeinde Wien). Further objects were returned in the 1990s.

A small Jewish museum was opened on December 31, 1964, in the Desider-Friedmann-Hof in Tempelgasse 3. However, it garnered little public attention and closed for renovations in 1967, never to reopen.

In 1986, the establishment of a new Jewish Museum in Vienna was announced by then-mayor Helmut Zilk in New York. A foundation committee included representatives from Austrian state, the city of Vienna, the Jewish Community, and the Vienna Philharmonic.

The Jewish Museum Vienna was established as a limited company in 1988 under the management of director Christian Cap. It was entrusted with the management of the Max Berger Collection and the IKG Collection.

In 1993, Austrian collector Martin Schlaff presented his collection of approximately 5,000 antisemitic objects, dating from 1490 to 1946, to the city of Vienna for cataloging and exhibition.

In 1993, the auction house Dorotheum made the Palais Eskeles on Dorotheergasse in Vienna available to the museum. Julius H. Schoeps was appointed director, and the museum library was opened here in 1994.

Between 1995 and 1996, the Palais Eskeles was adapted by architects eichinger oder knechtl to create more display spaces, increase storage capacity, and add a coffee house and a specialist bookshop.

On October 25, 2000, the second building of the Jewish Museum Vienna was opened at Judenplatz. This site, housing the Judenplatz Holocaust Memorial, documents the social, cultural, and religious lives of Viennese Jews in the Middle Ages.

To accommodate a new public-facing direction, director Danielle Spera prioritized renovating the Dorotheergasse premises. The renovation, from January to October 2011, included a technical overhaul, layout changes, and updated visitor facilities.

On October 19, 2011, the Jewish Museum Vienna reopened to significant public interest following its renovation. The reopening featured a new facade, a light installation, updated foyer, and a permanent exhibition "Vienna. Jewish Museum. 21st Century."

As part of the 2011 renovation, the Visible Storage area ('Schaudepot') on the third floor was completely redesigned to showcase the museum's Judaica collection. It highlights individual objects and includes displays on Viennese prayer houses, synagogues, and post-1945 community history.

Since its reopening in October 2011, the Jewish Museum Vienna has attracted record numbers of visitors. The Judenplatz location saw visitor numbers double in 2011 compared to 2010, and overall attendance reached 59,471 in 2011.

In November 2013, the museum launched its new permanent exhibition, "Our City! Jewish Vienna – Then to now." This exhibition focuses on the history of Vienna's Jews, particularly their resurgence from 1945 onwards.