The Jewish Museum Vienna first opened its doors on November 1, 1895. The founding of this important Viennese institution was a pioneering achievement in the museum world, with its initial focus on the culture and history of Jewish people in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Over the decades, both the museum’s locations and its thematic focus have changed. Today, particular emphasis is placed on Vienna around 1900. This was a period when Vienna was a center of Jewish art and culture. At that time, the Viennese Jewish community was one of the largest in Europe. To mark this special anniversary, the Jewish Museum Vienna (JMW) is presenting an extensive program of activities under the theme “130 Years of the Jewish Museum Vienna – Diversity, Remembrance, Vision”. 

In the spirit of remembrance 

This milestone celebrates the unique heritage and the diversity of Jewish history and culture in Vienna. The anniversary year is also dedicated to remembering the institution’s beginnings and the challenges it has faced. Looking ahead to the future of this vibrant and open museum will also be a focus over the coming weeks and months. 

The Jewish Museum Vienna has two sites in the historic city center: the main building in Palais Eskeles at Dorotheergasse 11 and the Museum Judenplatz at Judenplatz 8, where the remains of Vienna’s medieval synagogue can be seen. Judenplatz itself is home to the “Memorial to the Austrian Jewish Victims of the Shoah,” an important site of remembrance designed by British artist Rachel Whiteread. 

 Reflections between Heaven and Earth 

Until October 5, 2025, the main museum building is hosting the anniversary exhibition “G*d. Reflections between Heaven and Earth”. The exhibition poses seven profound questions about the divine, bringing religious objects and contemporary art, tradition and science together in dialogue. This sensuous and intellectual exhibition experience features international loans and special pieces from the collection of the world’s first Jewish museum, many of which have never been displayed before. 

Special tour of the permanent exhibition 

Starting in early September 2025, a new highlight tour will take visitors through the fascinating permanent exhibition of the JMW: “Our City! Jewish Vienna – Then to Now”. This special cultural mediation is accompanied by an illustrated character representing Jakob Bronner. Bronner was one of the museum’s first curators in 1895. At selected stations throughout the exhibition, quotes, historical context and narrative perspectives shed light on Bronner’s view of collecting Jewish history: from precious Judaica to educational objects, amulets, and evidence of Jewish life in Palestine, to his interest in distinctly Jewish art. 

The tour commemorates important figures in Viennese Jewish history, the Stadttempel, and the Revolution of 1848. It bridges past and present, revealing the origins of Jewish museum concepts in Vienna – and how their legacy continues to resonate today. The tour concludes with a look at the first Jewish museum itself: its history, its confiscation by the National Socialists in 1938 and its enduring idea – a Jewish museum for everyone. 

Open House Day in November 

A highlight of the anniversary year is the Open House Day on November 21, 2025. On this day, special tours and little surprises await visitors throughout the building at Dorotheergasse. The anniversary year will be complemented by several media formats. 

JMW podcast series (https://www.jmw.at/digital/podcast) 
JMW social media series on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/JuedischesMuseumWien) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/explore/locations/9007358) 
Digital tour of the world’s first Jewish museum (https://sammlung.jmw.at/digitale-touren/a7skb7fllte5eac3d-das-erste-jüdische-museum-in-wien/) 

Discover Jewish Vienna with ivie 

Anyone wishing to discover all the key Jewish sites in Vienna has a perfect opportunity to do so with ivie, the city guide app developed by the Vienna Tourist Board. The “Guide to Jewish Vienna” leads visitors to 13 locations across the city. Special museums, such as the locations of the Jewish Museum Vienna, the Sigmund Freud Museum, and the Viktor Frankl Museum, are included in the tour. The guide also includes memorial sites, such as the Shoah Wall of Names – the newest and largest Holocaust memorial in Vienna, which was completed in 2021. All the names of the approximately 65,000 Austrian Jews who were murdered are engraved in the natural stone walls. 

The Karmeliterviertel with its Jewish character is also featured in this guide, as are cemeteries with special atmospheres, such as the Old Jewish Cemetery at the Vienna Central Cemetery and the mysterious Rossau Jewish Cemetery. This cemetery is the oldest preserved Jewish cemetery in Austria. It is hidden away in an inner courtyard in Vienna’s 9th district – a real insider tip. Of course, the Stadttempel, Vienna’s main synagogue, is not to be missed. 

In the Footsteps of Zionism 

The original burial site where Theodor Herzl was laid to rest in 1904 at the Döbling Cemetery also takes center stage. Herzl is considered the founder of political Zionism and the spiritual father of Israel. ivie reveals why his grave is now empty. The “Guide to Jewish Vienna” also pays tribute to Herzl’s most important associate, Viennese architect Oskar Marmorek. For example, he designed the well-known Rüdigerhof—a jewel of Art Nouveau that houses a historic café of the same name. 

Links 

Jewish Museum Vienna: www.jmw.at 
City Guide App “ivie” – Info & Download: ivie.wien.info 
Jewish Vienna Guide: wien.info/en/jewish-vienna-guide

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Contact

Helena Steinhart
Media Relations
+43 1 211 14-364
helena.steinhart@vienna.info