The Ghetto Museum in Terezín in the Litoměřice area, part of the Terezín Memorial, will close on 2 November 2026 for extensive reconstruction. According to the plan, it is to remain closed for more than two years and reopen to the public in 2029. The news was announced by Terezín Memorial spokesman Stanislav Lada [1][2].
Reason for the Reconstruction
Terezín Memorial director Jan Roubínek said that the current exhibition has served visitors for more than 25 years and that the time has come to prepare a new version that would reflect current museum practices and visitors' needs. He added that the reconstruction will also improve the facilities of the whole building [1]. Last year, the museum was visited by 240,000 people [1][2].
Winning Architectural Design
The new design of the museum is based on an international architectural competition, which attracted 22 teams. From five finalists, the expert jury unanimously chose the design submitted by the SKUPINA studio, led by architect Marcela Steinbachová, who invited American architect Steven Holl to collaborate [1][2]. In addition to the reconstruction of the building and the new exhibition, the design also addresses the surrounding public space, adjacent green areas and other visitor infrastructure [1][2].
A prominent feature of the reconstruction will be an extension called the Tower of Light, whose design Holl helped create. Its form is based on the life story of Petr Ginz and his drawing Moon Landscape, which he created during his imprisonment in Terezín. According to sources, the symbolism of light in the design links the past with a motif of hope [1][2].
New Exhibition and Temporary Arrangements
The aim of the new exhibition is to present not only the historical context but, above all, the everyday life, cultural and social life of the people deported to the ghetto and their individual fates. The exhibition is to make use of projections, interactive screens, video mapping, audio elements and three-dimensional projections, complemented by authentic objects, photographs and documents. The design also envisages using parts of the building not previously utilised, such as the attic [1][2].
During the reconstruction, the history of the ghetto will be temporarily made accessible in the courtyard of the Museum of Art in the former Magdeburg Barracks, where the ticket office will also be relocated. This building will become the main visitor building of the Terezín Memorial. Spokesman Lada said that the building of the former town scales, with its exhibition on the transports, will also reopen [1][2].
Background
Visitors to Terezín usually head first to the Small Fortress and then to the Ghetto Museum. Between 1940 and 1945, the Nazis brought more than 200,000 prisoners to the Gestapo prison in the Small Fortress, the Theresienstadt Ghetto and the Richard concentration camp in Litoměřice. Since 1947, their memory has been commemorated by an institution now called the Terezín Memorial [1][2].
Related articles: Ghetto Museum in Terezín, Terezín
Chronology
- — The Terezín Memorial announced that the Ghetto Museum in Terezín will close from 2 November for reconstruction based on the winning architectural design and is due to reopen in 2029. ČTK / České noviny iDNES.cz: Ústí nad Labem
Pages linking here
Sources
- ČTK / České noviny — 6 October 2026
- iDNES.cz: Ústí nad Labem — 6 October 2026