Stasi Museum – Leipzig, Germany

The Stasi Museum in Leipzig, Germany.  For those who have never heard of it, the Stasi was the East German Little brother to the Russian NKVD internal security Secret Police.  The Stasi maintained a network of informers within both East and West Germany during the Cold War and also maintained dossiers on almost every German, even many in the West.  In East Germany (GDR) the Stasi was the government organ responsible for internal security and ferreting out dissidents to the regime.  They did this by doing some things that made the  Nazi Gestapo look like amateurs.

Below are some of the photos I took in our hasty tour of the museum before it closed.

The exterior of the former Stasi building as you approach it on the street.
Mural of the Coat of Arms of the (Minsitry for State Security) Stasi just inside the entrance to the building.
Machine used by the Stasi to steam open personal letters so their contents could be read in the search for dissidents.
Machine used to seal envelopes that had been opened. The goal was to make it so that people did not know, or at least were not sure, that their mail had been opened.
This machine was used to back-light letters. According to the plaques next to it, this method could sometimes catch microfilm that had been glued underneath the stamp.
Stasi officer’s Wall Locker with equipment.
Stool and camera used to take pictures of inmates held by the Stasi for questioning.

 

Holding Cell where Stasi detainees were kept, sometimes for months or years before their release.
Kit used by Stasi officers to disguise themselves when performing surveillance of citizens identified as possible regime enemies.