Online Collection
Our cultural treasures at a click
Open Treasury of the Hessian Palaces and Gardens
Our mission is to make the cultural and historical treasures of the Hessian Palace Administration accessible to everyone. With our online collection, we are expanding access to Hessen's important cultural heritage and bringing it into the digital realm. The objects from former monasteries, churches, castles, residences, from aristocratic as well as bourgeois collection contexts, provide fascinating insights into the multifaceted history of the region - from antiquity to the 20th century. Paintings, prints, documents, manuscripts, sculptures and arts and crafts from furniture to armour and clocks to everyday objects tell almost 2,000 years of cultural history in the heart of Europe.
Since the beginning of 2024, a digital team within the SG has been working on preparing the collection objects for online publication. This project is funded by the Hessian Ministry of Science and Research, Art and Culture.
We are in favour of the open access concept and are committed to making Hessen's cultural heritage freely accessible. Our aim is to promote education, research and creative utilisation worldwide. With open data and a contextualised presentation online, we enable global visibility of works - regardless of time and place. This is our contribution to the democratisation of knowledge. In this way, we raise awareness of the value of our history and its preservation, while opening up new perspectives on the evidence of the past for our time.
Our pop-up studio in Bad Homburg Palace
Photo: Stefan Schmitt, 2024
The finished photo of the object: in this case a shell with an eagle's claw on a hemisphere (inv. no. 4.7.240)
Photo: Stefan Schmitt, 2024
Our book scanner in use
©SG, Foto: Stefan Schmitt
Frequently Asked Questions
- Are all objects accessible online?
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Most of the objects have not yet been digitised. The entire collection of the SG is being digitised step by step. This is being done retrospectively, but all new acquisitions and donations are also being documented as soon as possible in accordance with certain guidelines and museum standards. Therefore, not all sub-collections are yet adequately represented.
- How does the digitisation of objects and their information work?
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The online presentation of an object requires many steps: Firstly, it is inventoried in our collection database and recorded photographically - if necessary, under the supervision of a restorer. All available information on the object is documented in the database in accordance with international standards. In addition, some works are given descriptive texts that are checked and edited to provide an initial art and cultural-historical categorisation. After final approval, the object information and images will be published on museum-digital.
- What information can I find about the objects?
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As a first step, we provide basic information on the objects in the collection, including title, artist, period of origin, dimensions, material and technical details, standardised keywords and an image of the object. We are continuously working on making further information on the objects available. Despite careful checking, the data may be incomplete or incorrect. If you have any comments, questions or remarks about the objects, please do not hesitate to contact us.
- What can I do with the images and data?
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All images of objects owned by the SG whose copyright restrictions have expired are made available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence. This means that you can download high-resolution image files and use them for private, scientific, creative or commercial purposes. We kindly ask you to attribute the images according to the following scheme: ‘Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Hessen / Photo: First name Last name, Year (CC BY-SA 4.0)’. The same licence conditions should apply to the distribution. If the image material is used for scientific publications, please send us a specimen copy or special print in physical or digital form so that we can take into account the latest findings on our objects:
Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Hessen
z.Hd. Fr. Fabry
Schloss
61348 Bad Homburg vor der HöheIf you have any queries regarding the use of images and the submission of publications in digital form, please write to us at:
In the case of some permanent loans, limited rights of use apply at the request of the lending institutions. The selected licence is noted with the respective object. Descriptive texts on the objects are generally available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, all other information is freely available as CC0.
Any use of the digitised material aimed at manipulation, disinformation or a distorted presentation of content is expressly disapproved of. We are committed to responsible use in the interests of the free dissemination of knowledge and ask all users to respect the principles of the licence and ethical principles.
- Who do I contact for images that are not yet available online?
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If a work is not yet available online, please send an enquiry to:
If a new recording is necessary, please allow sufficient lead time. We will inform you in advance if there are any costs involved.
Do you have any further questions?
We will be happy to help you! Simply contact us at: