The Czech Contribution
The Czechs have a long and distinguished history of scientific and technical achievement and it’s only fitting that they should take some pride in that. If you’re in South Moravia, the Brno Technical Museum is a great place to see some of that heritage.
The main building of the museum is located in the Královo Pole district of Brno and quite easy to access by the city’s public transport system.
The building is dominated by a large open atrium with windows on one side to allow a lot of natural light in. Two aircraft; a Let L-200 Morava and an HC-102 helicopter, are suspended from the atrium ceiling. Both aircraft are products of the Czech domestic aviation industry.
In this article, I will focus on the permanent exhibits at the museum’s main building.
Ground Floor
The ground floor contains exhibits on engines, computer development and optical tecnologies.
The main atrium houses steam driven engines and water powered engines. Some of the steam and water engines are functional and you may be treated to a guide starting one or more up if you’re at the museum at the right time.
To one side of the atrium, is the display dedicated to aircraft engines. Several engines of various types and era are exhibited in cutaway fashion to allow you to examine the inner workings of them.
To the other side of the atrium are the displays of optical technologies and computer development.
The optical technologies exhibit shows the development of both still photography and cinematic projection as well as the development of scanning electron microscopes.
The computer development exhibit is a quite comprehensive and chronologically arranged walkthrough of computer and data storage evolution from old analog mainframe computers and punched paper cards right up to the modern digital age.
Also on the ground floor is a branch of Jean Paul’s Restaurant, a locally run chain of restaurants and bistros. They offer a wide selection of food and drinks and are a good option for breakfast, lunch or a quick snack if you’re passing through the area. They are also a great option to refresh yourself after visiting the museum.
Keep in mind that the bistro is not run by the museum and you need to leave the museum to enter the bistro. If you buy your museum tickets first and want to visit the bistro during your museum visit, keep your tickets with you to assure re-entry to the museum.
Main Floor
The main floor contains the entrance, coat room, souvenir shop and ticket desk.
Though the museum has no cafeteria, there are a few tables and a selection of vending machines serving drinks and snacks on the main floor.
In the way of exhibits, it has a permanent display area concerned with the automotive history of the country and features vehicles from such domestic producers as Tatra, Praga and Wikov to name a few.
The main floor also houses the “Brno on Two Wheels” exhibition. This display focuses on the history of motor sport in Brno. A selection of historical racing motorcycles is on view here as well as a historical overview of the city’s Masaryk Circuit from its establishment in 1930 to the present day as a world class racing facility.
Second Floor
Moving up from the main floor, the second floor contains exhibits on metalurgy, telecommunications, trades, automated music instruments and aids for blind people.
The metalurgy section takes you through the history of working metal from the Bronze Age to more modern and refined smithing and casting methods.
The second floor also houses a substantial “Culture of the Blind” exhibit which highlights the development of technologies and aids to the blind and visually impaired. Among other things, you will see machines designed for generating and printing Braille text and devices used to teach people to read and write in Braille as well as examples of how daily technology has been adapted for use by the blind.
Also on the second floor is the “Lane of Trades” a small collection of shops representing trades such as dentistry, bookmaking, locksmiths and the grocer as they would have appeared in the 1920s and 1930s.
Additionally, the second floor houses the “Mechanical Music Parlour”, a display of automated musical instruments such as player pianos. A number of these instruments are functional and sometimes a museum guide will start them for guests to not only enjoy the music but also to marvel at the complexity and intricacy of the inner workings of the machines themselves.
Third Floor
The third floor is a bit smaller than the others and consists of two galleries. One takes the form of the “Technical Playroom”, while the other is a large temporary display gallery.
The playroom contains a variety of activities that demonstrate many aspects of physics and science in an easy to understand way. All of the displays have instruction and explanation leaflets in Czech and English.
While it does not possess the flash of a modern, computerized science centre activity room; it is still an effective and enjoyable place for kids and adults alike to play with science after a trip through the rest of the museum.
Behind the Building
Behind the museum building, there is a selection of preserved aircraft.
It’s best to save a viewing of the outside aircraft for last as it’s not possible to re-enter the museum through the back door that is there. Collecting your coat before you visit the aircraft will ensure that you don’t have to go back in through the front door to get them and can simply make your way to the tram stop in front of the building when you’re ready to leave.
The aircraft are subject to rotating in and out of display and some will look fresher than others. This is because the Brno Technical Museum has a partnership with the Kunovice Air museum that allows for the loaning of aircraft and access to restoration facilities between the museums.
Paying a Visit
The museum is easily accessed by a public transit tram line which has a stop directly outside the museum building.
I would advise giving the main museum building at least two hours to properly take in.
Several of the exhibits have bilingual Czech/English notes to go with them, for those that don’t, the museum usually has some English language leaflets nearby.
There are also small panels with scannable QR codes located around the museum so you can download a museum guide in Czech, English and German on your smartphone or other compatible mobile devices. Aside of QR codes, there are also metal placards near some exhibits that have reference numbers for them in the museum’s mobile app guide.
I can’t speak for the quality of the guide app as compatibility issues between it and my smartphone prevented me from uploading it on my most recent visit in July of 2025. A museum staff member told me that the app does not work with some smartphones, so it is an issue the museum knows about.
Learning More
The Brno Technical Museum is not limited to the main facility, it is in fact a large complex that is responsible for a variety of preserved technical sites and monuments throughout the South Moravia region.
If you visit Brno in the spring or summer months, you may see some vintage trams running around town or even get the chance to ride on one of them; these are part of the museum’s collection as well.
For a more detailed overview of the museum’s holdings and their locations, follow this link to the museum’s website.
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