About the museum

The Ornamental Cast Iron Museum in Büdelsdorf belongs to a handful of museums nationwide in Germany exclusively and intensely dedicated to the topic of cast iron and ornamental cast iron. It is one of the most modern exhibition centres in North Germany.

The Ornamental Cast Iron Museum was founded by Käte Ahlmann, one of the most renowned female entrepreneurs in the 20th century. In 1931, she assumed the Carlshütte business, following her husband’s death. She temporarily expanded the the iron foundry located in Büdelsdorf to up to 2500 employees. On the occasion of her 70th birthday in 1960, she founded the Ornamental Cast Iron Museum.

Her wish was that the ornamental cast iron collection accumulated by her and her predecessors over the course of several years is kept properly and presented to the general public. For this purpose, she had an exhibition hall built by the Danish architect Carl Storgård, directly opposite the now historic factory premises. Finally, the Ornamental Cast Iron Museum was opened in 1963. Käte Ahlmann was no longer privy to experiencing this. She passed away a few months earlier.