Object of the Month - Stiftung Deutsches Technikmuseum Berlin

Models of a brick lighthouse and a red and white imaginary lighthouse are standing on a sea chart.

Lighthouse Models, second half of the 20th century

The gaming chair consists of a red plastic seat and has an elongated, low shape. The seat cushions are covered with black imitation leather. The seat is mounted on a red wave-shaped metal frame that extends far beyond the seat at the front. The frame thus allows the feet to rest on a metal plate on which the gas, brake and clutch pedals are mounted. A column on which a steering wheel is mounted rises up from the frame just in front of the driver's seat.

Playseat Formula Red with Thrustmaster Formula 1 Bundle, 2021

A rectangular, elongated metal flash unit is mounted on a tripod. The legs are painted grey while the housing is somewhat darker and melds into an olive green color. There is a red round glass disk on the front of the flash unit.

Flash unit BE1.3, 2008

The lamp is hung on a white cord. The light bulb is encased with transparent, rounded plexiglass panes that are engraved with decorative zigzag lines.

Lamp, 2016

This brightly enameled miniature stove is operated electrically. The stove is equipped with a power cord and plug and has a rotary switch at the front for turning it on and off. Cooking was carried out on two hotplates with the accompanying metal cookware: two kettles, a saucepan with a red lid and two cooking pots with a blue and a green lid, respectively.

Electric toy stove, circa 1930

The pixel display wall is illuminated in rainbow colors.

Digital Pixel Wall at kids.digilab.berlin

The copper plaque is about the size and weight of a small tablet computer. An early New High German text engraved on the ruffled and furrowed surface provides details about the construction of the Berlin lock in 1657.

Copper Plaque for the City Navigation Lock, undated

The control column of a D. VIII fighter aircraft from the Pfalz Aircraft Factory can be seen on the displayed technical drawing. The aircraft control column next to it served as the model. It was removed from the museum's D VIII aircraft for the purpose of restoration and measurement.

Aircraft Control Column, 1918

The finger calculator consists of a brown wooden case, the front part of which can be opened downwards to form a kind of showcase during lessons. The outlines of the ten metal fingers of two "hands" are displayed. There is a set of duplicate fingers hidden behind the visible ones. There are thus two rows of fingers. The front row is made up of red metal fingers behind which are identically shaped white ones. Both rows of fingers can be folded down towards the front by means of a simple mechanism.

Fingers Calculator, 1920s

Artistically designed instructions for building castles, towers and bridges, appealing lid pictures, the typical red, yellow and blue stones and the ingenious expansion system made the Anchor Stone building block kit a worldwide success.

Anker Stone Building Blocks, after 1910

24 white, square sugar packets are lined up chronologically in the order of their World Cup titles. They are imprinted with such motifs as soccer balls wearing traditional national hats or waving national flags as well the national colors of the respective World Cup Champions and advertising slogans such as "Sugar, a thing of perfection" or "Sugar boosts endurance."

Sugar packets with World Cup Winner motifs, 1994

This MZ-R500 MiniDisc Recorder has the shape of a small square box with asymmetrically arranged function keys and a silver colored aluminum surface.

Portable MiniDisc Recorder MZ-R500, 2001

Two library stamp imprints are seen on the title page of an open book. They are centered under the heading "Le fond de la mer," which is French for "The Seabed".

A Book from France, stolen 1940

The 35mm slides can be inserted into the rectangular metal frame via side rails. Ten slides fit next to each other in a row, resulting in a horizontal row of images. In total, each frame consists of ten rows, one above the other.

Film Slide Cabinet from H. Berthold AG, after 1960

This digital camera consists of two parts, the screen and controls unit and the lens unit. The control unit has a handgrip for holding the camera. The shutter button, two function keys, a setting dial and a small digital display are located on its top face. The lens unit is connected to the control unit with a swivel hinge. It consists of the lens, the viewfinder, a light sensor and a small built-in flash.

Nikon Coolpix 990 digital camera, 2001

The picture shows a silver-grey metal time clock. A dial showing the time is embedded in its front. Beneath the dial there is a slit where the time card is to be inserted. The current time is stamped on the card by pressing a black button located on the top of the housing.

IBM Model 780 Time Clock, circa 1950

This rectangular tablecloth is made from white cotton. It is embroidered with green fir branches, which were applied by hand. An English language imprint on one part of the tablecloth is noteworthy. It shows that the tablecloth had previously been a flour sack.

Christmas tablecloth made from a flour sack, 1948

The millionth Pallas carburetor is mounted on a round pedestal. It is a carburetor for a small moped. The pedestal has a green hammer paint finish upon which the jubilee and the date are noted in black lettering.

The millionth Pallas carburetor, 1957

An open gray box with many envelopes and samples of various grass papers as well as dried grasses.

Box with grass paper samples

Der Bildplattenspieler besteht aus einem Holzkasten mit abnehmbarem Deckel. Auf der Ober-seite des geöffneten Kastens liegt eine schwarze Bildplatte aus dünnem Kunststoff. Darüber schwebt der Abtastkopf aus Metall. Er wird über einen Motorantrieb an einem feststehenden Metallarm von außen nach innen geführt.

Videodisc Player (Prototype), 1970

Die viereckige Maschine ist dreiunddreißig Zentimeter breit, fünfundzwanzig Zentimeter tief und sieben Zentimeter hoch. Sie besitzt ein rotes Kunststoffgehäuse und schwarze Tasten. In der obersten Reihe befinden sich die Funktionstasten F1 bis F12. Darunter liegen das Braille-Display sowie die Steuerungstasten zum Wechseln des Bildschirmausschnitts. In der unteren Mitte befinden sich die Braille-Tasten. Rechts und links daneben liegen die Zahlentasten und zusätzliche Bedienungstasten.

BAUM David Pro System 90, 1992

Aufgeklappte Schachtel, darin rechts eine Zeichnung mit einer Widmung. Links ist die Deckelinnenseite zu sehen, auf der Heinrich Hirschbergs Exlibris klebt. Es zeigt im Vordergrund ein aufgeschlagenes Buch auf einem Tisch, im Hintergrund ist durch einen Fensterrahmen eine Fabrik zu erkennen.

Heinrich Hirschberg's guest book, 1916-1923

Auf dem Foto sind zwei weiße Porzellantassen abgebildet. Die linke Tasse ist zylinderförmig, mit goldenem Streifen und einem goldenen Löwen als Symbol der Reederei Cunard. Die rechte Tasse ist bauchiger geformt, hat einen gold-schwarzen Rand und trägt eine prunkvollere Version des Reederei-Logos; sie wirkt insgesamt edler.

Tableware from the QUEEN ELIZABETH 2, pre 1994

Ein aufgeschlagenes Zigarettenbild-Album der Berliner Zigarettenfabrik Garbáty von 1938 zeigt sechs Abbildungen von Kraftfahrzeugen und neun Kraftfahrzeugkühler in Frontansicht.

“The Cars of Today” cigarette card album, 1933

Farbfoto mit Frontalansicht der großen Schreibmaschine Olivetti M 20. Sie ist matt schwarz, besitzt wenig schmückende Elemente und ist auf ein massives Holzbrett geschraubt. Sie weist starke Gebrauchsspuren auf.

Olivetti M 20 typewriter, 1926

Der Plattenspieler L75 der Firma Lenco, verbaut in einem Teil der selbstgebauten DJ-Anlage von Winfred „Fredi“ Maltzahn. In das furnierte Pult sind Fächer eingelassen, in denen sich Single-Schallplatten befinden.

Lenco L75 turntable from “Fredi's Discothek”, ca. 1975

Die beiden Krawatten sehen fast identisch aus. Sie unterscheiden sich jedoch durch die jeweils in der Mitte klein aufgestickten Logos DR beziehungsweise DB.

Neckties from the GDR’s Deutsche Reichsbahn and the Deutsche Bahn AG, 1993/1994

Pythagorean Theorem

Das Bild zeigt eine hundert Jahre alte Scheibe Brot mit Münze. Das Geldstück wurde vermutlich für eine Hochzeit oder ähnliches eingebacken.

Slice of bread with coin, 1919

Kolorierte Ansichtskarte mit Titel „Töff-Töff Grüsse“. Fahrer und Beifahrerin auf einem Personenkraftwagen, im Kühlergrill eine Berliner Straßenszene mit Doppeldeckerbus. Der Kartenrand enthält umlaufend eine handschriftliche Mitteilung.

Berlin Postcard, 1907