Historisches Museum Frankfurt

House of the Golden Scales

About the exhibition

  • Only as part of a public guided tour

Market 5

Admission 8 €

reduced 4 € + guided tour 6 €

The Historical Museum has furnished the upper floors of the front building of the Golden Scales with furniture, paintings and everyday objects from the 17th and 18th centuries. This is how the wealthy merchant family van Hamel, who originally built the house, might have lived. The highlight is the "Belvederchen" with its view of the cathedral and the surrounding roofs of the new old town.

The city acquired the important 17th century monument back in 1899 and handed it over to the Historical Museum in 1913. The museum set up an exhibition here for its 50th anniversary in 1928, which was on display until 1942. On March 22, 1944, the Goldene Waage - like most of Frankfurt's old town - was destroyed by bombing during the Second World War. The building disappeared from the cityscape - until its detailed reconstruction as part of the Dom Römer project.

Photo gallery

  • Photo gallery

  • Enlarge

    Haus zur Goldenen Waage with coffee house

    HMF, Photo: Uwe Dettmar

  • Enlarge

    Museum rooms in the Golden Scales

    HMF, Photo: Horst Ziegenfusz

  • Enlarge

    The Belvedere - rooftop balcony on the Golden Scales

    HMF, Photo: Uwe Dettmar

  • Enlarge

    Golden Scales

    HMF, Photo: Uwe Dettmar

FAQs

A guide in the series "Kabinettstücke des Historischen Museums" documents the history of the Golden Scales with numerous illustrations. The cabinet piece is available in the museum store for €8.

Visits to the Haus zur Goldenen Waage are only possible as part of a guided tour. Please contact our visitor service or search for the category "Goldene Waage" in the calendar of events.

Unfortunately, access to the Haus zur Goldenen Waage is not barrier-free. There are 82 steps to the Belvedere.

Private group tours (max. 10 people) must be booked via the Visitor Service and cost €220 per group, €240 on weekends/holidays, foreign language + €10.
You can reach the Historisches Museum's visitor service Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. by telephone on +49 69 212-35154 or by e-mail at

The guided tours last 90 minutes. The meeting point is in the foyer of the Historical Museum in the Saalhof. The first stop is the "Old Town Drama", where the eventful history of the Golden Scales is told in the context of the history of Frankfurt's Old Town. From there, the route leads to the Golden Scales. There is a checkroom for jackets, coats and smaller bags. Larger items of luggage must be deposited in the lockers in the Historical Museum.

The rooms in the Golden Scales can only be visited as part of public guided tours or privately booked group tours. Many valuable collection objects are presented unprotected in the small rooms, which is why the tours are accompanied by supervisory staff. There are no permanent opening hours. There is no staff on site. The rooms are not rented out.