Time does not transform us, it only opens us up.

Foundation

Founding

The non profit foundation “German Watch Museum Glashütte – Nicolas G. Hayek” was founded March 16, 2006 by the City of Glashütte and the watch manufactory Glashütte Original. The foundation supports art and culture, science and research along with education in the art of watchmaking.

Namesake

With its name the foundation honours the entrepreneur and visionary Nicolas G. Hayek (1928 – 2010), one of the most prominent personalities of the modern watch industry. Mr Hayek was a co-founder and long-standing president of The Swatch Group Ltd, of which Glashütte Original has been a member since 2000. His strategic decisions not only made Swatch Group the largest manufacturer of watches worldwide, but also helped strengthen and enhance the reputation of the European watch industry. Apart from his considerable professional achievements as an entrepreneur Mr Nicolas G. Hayek also distinguished himself through his social and political engagement. With his firm belief in the future of the watch industry in Germany, Nicolas G. Hayek committed himself, from the year 2000 on, to support the Glashütte site as well.

Vision & Activities

The objective of the “German Watch Museum Glashütte” foundation is to promote and support art and culture, science and research as well as education in the art of watchmaking. With the German Watch Museum Glashütte, the restoration workshop, the specialist library, the archive as well as through various projects and activities, watchmaking knowledge, valuable documents and exhibits unique in the world are conserved and made available to the public at large.

In doing so, the founders aim to hand down traditions and knowledge about watchmaking to new generations, to nurture the cultural heritage and to strengthen the Glashütte location for the long term. The foundation serves as the basis for an international network into which the craft of watchmaking and its companies, collectors and restorers, scientists and students, organisations and institutions as well as interested persons can be integrated, on the level of ideas as well as in financial terms.

The goal of the foundation is realised by means of the following measures:

  • Engagement in cultural matters
  • Operation of the “German Watch Museum Glashütte” in accordance with the principles of museology.
  • Expansion of the collection through acquisitions by the museum or loans
  • Organisation of thematic exhibitions
  • Expansion and maintenance of the specialist library, the archive and the workshop, which are also accessible to the general public, and granting of printing cost subsidies and support for publications engagement in scientific matters
  • Organisation and support of scientific events and projects
  • Assignment of research contracts and fellowships
  • Supervision of scientific works as well as support for the publication of scientific studies
  • Engagement in educational matters
  • Granting of fellowships
  • Enabling participation in seminars, projects, and similar events

Founder

In the course of the renaissance of the watch industry, the City of Glashütte and the Glashütte Original Manufactory jointly founded an innovative and ambitious watch museum. It presents the rich heritage of watchmaking in Glashütte and is a worthwhile destination for watch fans, connoisseurs of art and interested visitors from around the world.

Please see the relevant websites for detailed information on both founders:

Manufactory Glashütte Original

Town Glashütte