Zeiss-Planetarium Jena
About This Site
The Zeiss-Planetarium Jena opened on 18 July 1926 above the Zeiss works, and is the world's oldest planetarium still projecting the night sky it was built to show.
The fourth of its kind, and the one that lasted, 1912–1926
The idea traces back to Oskar von Miller, founder of Munich's Deutsches Museum, who set out in 1912 to build a planetarium for it; Zeiss took up the project, and from July 1924 around 80,000 people came to see trial shows of the artificial night sky under a temporary dome on the roof of its Jena works.[1] Wuppertal-Barmen, Leipzig and Düsseldorf opened large planetariums earlier in 1926, and Jena followed as the fourth. None of the other three survived the twentieth century; Jena's did, which makes it the oldest planetarium in the world still in operation.[2]
A shell roof before shell roofs had a name, 1926
The Jena architects Johannes Schreiter and Hans Schlag designed the building around a dome 25 metres across, light enough that its construction became an early proof of what a thin concrete shell could span.
Questions visitors ask
- What is the Zeiss-Planetarium Jena?
- The Zeiss-Planetarium Jena opened on 18 July 1926 above the Zeiss works and is the world's oldest planetarium still projecting the night sky it was built to show — the fourth large planetarium to open in 1926, and the only one of the four to survive to today.[2]
- Why is the Zeiss-Planetarium Jena the oldest in the world?
- Wuppertal-Barmen, Leipzig and Düsseldorf opened large planetariums earlier in 1926 and Jena followed as the fourth, but none of the other three survived the twentieth century — Jena's did, making it the oldest planetarium in the world still in operation.[2]
- How much does the Zeiss-Planetarium Jena cost?
- From €13.50 reduced to €15.00 full price, depending on the show.
Sources
- Das Zeiss-Planetarium Jena — Zeiss-Planetarium Jena, retrieved 30 August 2026
- Geschichte — Zeiss-Planetarium Jena, retrieved 30 August 2026
Visit Information
From €13.50 reduced / €15.00 full price, depending on the show
Am Planetarium 5, 07743 Jena