Are there any retrocomputing museums in the former Eastern Bloc countries?

4/24/2021 6:45:11 PM

In Romania, there is one in Arad. See:

To visit the museum, you need an appointment (set with at least a day before).

4/24/2021 6:29:17 PM

Half the answers seem to be from Bulgaria ¯_(ツ)_/¯

I think there was some kind of specialization between the countries and we had computing production. It didn’t work well in the long term though.

Here is a video from museum in Kilifarevo for old tech, not only computers:
https://bnt.bg/bg/a/retro-muzey-na-tekhnikata-v-kilifarevo

Update: I see that retro-museum in Varna also has some retro-computers
https://www.facebook.com/RetroMuseumBg/posts/3282617475135933/

I watched also one guy on the television that made a museum for old computers and components. I have 2 packs of old components from the time of Pravetz or earlier that I wanted to donate him. My father worked in a computing center and had some parts leftover from there. If you are interested, write me a comment and I’ll put some more effort to try to find him and give you information.

My first computer was a 16bit 8088 or 8086, probably a clone, from what I recall. But I think it is long gone for scrap.

4/24/2021 6:35:04 PM

There’s a museum in Bulgaria dedicated to Pravets, the oldest Bulgarian-made computer.
https://kiosk.dartek.bg/clients/museums/380-kiosk-pravets-museum
http://pravetz.info/

4/24/2021 3:11:35 PM

There is The Museum of Computing and Informatics in Riga, Latvia.

To inform the society about the history and development of the computing, the Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Latvia, since 1984 houses The Museum of Computing and Informatics. It’s the only museum devoted to computer science in Baltic. Museum’s permanent exhibition includes a great number of the first computing and data processing devices used in Latvia as well as an interesting collection of minicomputers and early personal computers.

If you are in Riga go to flea market "Latgale" (locally called "Latgalīte"). It is possible you will find some obsolete electronics there to see or even to buy.

4/23/2021 3:39:56 PM

The Computerspielemuseum in East Berlin has already been mentioned, but there are also some old computers or reproductions (including a reproduction of one of Konrad Zuse’s first computers) in the Technikmuseum in Berlin. The Technikmuseum is in the Western part of Berlin, but if you happen to be in town anyway, you should not miss it.

Dresden was the center of East German computer production, and they seem to have some examples at the Technische Sammlungen, at the Robotron museum (HT to @scai) and at the Technical University. The latter two can only be visited after making an appointment.

Hoyerswerda, where Konrad Zuse spent five years of his youth and which is reasonably close to Dresden, also has a computer museum.

4/23/2021 12:25:43 PM

Hungary, Szeged.

https://ajovomultja.hu/?language=en

Some of the most interesting pieces include the first robotic animal ever constructed https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladybird_of_Szeged and the originator of the once ubiquitous 3.5" floppy drive https://ajovomultja.hu/mcd-1-casette-floppy-marcell-janosi?language=en (the English translation is atrocious).

4/23/2021 11:08:39 AM

Regarding Bulgaria you could visit the "National Polytechnic Museum" http://polytechnic-museum.com/. There are a mix of different technologies, a few years ago they had an explicit ‘old pcs’ exhibition.

4/23/2021 9:49:29 AM

There is a small computer museum in Brno, Czech Republic: https://www.fit.vut.cz/units/museum/.en

It focuses primarily on machines manufactured in Czechoslovakia (and some imported ones).

Also in Brno, there is an exposition in Technical museum about old computers: https://www.tmbrno.cz/en/expozice/computer-technology/

4/23/2021 6:53:12 AM

I can recommend the computer games museum in Berlin (https://www.computerspielemuseum.de/). It is in the former GDR part of Berlin, and because you are interested in retrocomputing I’m sure you will enjoy it.

4/22/2021 10:08:14 PM

There is a computer museum in Sigulda, Latvia.

It’s a private project by a single enthusiast (known as MaiklsBlack on the net). He’s been collecting devices for years and the museum has reportedly grown to 90 m^2 in size. He reports to have had over 380 old computers in 2018, about 80% of them working. His sites are only available in Latvian and Russian currently, you’ll have to use a translation tool if you don’t know the languages.

The sites include a catalogue of items. And it seems quite active, he has added an article just a few days ago.

The collection is not specific to local devices only, but he surely has some Soviet stuff: https://www.pchistory.lv/elektronika-mk-85-mikrokompyuter.html

4/22/2021 6:59:10 PM

There is Apple musseum in Prague, Czech Republic. I have seen computers like 1984 year Macintosh 128k there so it should probably qualify.

4/25/2021 11:03:23 AM

Since most (all?) computer museums can qualify as retrocomputing museums, you might find this list of computer museums useful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_computer_museums

You could also look at science museums and see whether they have some computer section. E.g. the large Polytechnic Museum in Moscow, Russia has a nice computer section:

The collection of computing equipment is the most comprehensive display in Russia and includes rare copyrights devices, such as automated abacus by Viktor Bunyakovsky,[4] one of the first models of Odner’s adding machine, the only surviving copy of the domestic computer "Ural", hydraulic integrator by Vladimir Lukyanov,[5] the world’s only computer based on ternary logic, "Syetun" and many other rarities.


From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_computer_museums:

Croatia:

Czech Republic

Poland:

  • Muzeum Historii Komputerów i Informatyki, Katowice
  • Muzeum Gry i Komputery Minionej Ery (Muzeum Gier), Wrocław
  • Apple Muzeum Polska, Piaseczno

Russia

Slovakia:

Ukraine:

In case Germany counts:

Germany:

4/22/2021 11:48:15 AM

There is a computer museum in Halle, Germany, formerly in the GDR. They have a lot of old computers and other devices on display from that time and place : http://rechenwerk-halle.de/usr/digital-ag/projekte/andere/museum/ or http://rechenwerk-halle.de/usr/digital-ag/RECHENWERK/index.html

If you google "Robotron museum" or "computer museum DDR" you will get a few more hits, probably all in German, though.

6/25/2023 1:03:13 PM

Yandex Museum, in the headquarters of Yandex — Moscow, Timura Frunze st., 11 str. 13.

Not a very large one, but has a few dozens or so of old computers, from around the world, not only from Soviet block.

Website (in Russian): https://yandex.ru/museum/

They also have a branch in St. Petersburg: https://yandex.ru/museum/spb (apparently currently closed, but to reopen in May).


Disclaimer: I am an employee of Yandex.

Credit:stackoverflow.com

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