Miniatur Wunderland
| Limited liability company (Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung) |
|
| Industry | Model railway |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Headquarters | Hamburg, Germany |
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Key people
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Frederik & Gerrit Braun, Stephan Hertz |
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Number of employees
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270 |
| Website | www.miniatur-wunderland.de |
Miniatur Wunderland (German for miniature wonderland) is a model railway attraction in Hamburg, Germany, and the largest of its kind in the world, built by the twins Gerrit and Frederik Braun. The railway is located in the historic Speicherstadt. In september 2015 the railway consisted of 15,400 metres (50,525 ft) of track in HO scale, divided into seven sections: Harz, the fictitious city of Knuffingen, the Alps and Austria, Hamburg, America, Scandinavia, Switzerland and a replicate from the Hamburg Airport. Of the 6,400 square metres (68,889 sq ft) of floorspace, the model takes 1,300 m2 (13,993 sq ft).[1]
By 2020, the exhibit is expected to have reached its final construction phase, including at least a total of ten new sections in a model area of over 2,300 m2 (24,757 sq ft).[1] The next section is Italy and opened at the End of 2015. The exhibit includes 930 trains made up of over 14,450 carriages, 335,000 lights, 228,000 trees, and 215,000 human figurines. The creators will work on models of France, England and Africa.[2]
Contents
History[edit]
The construction of the first part started in December 2000 and the first three parts were completed in August 2001. The project was created by twin brothers Frederik and Gerrit Braun.[3]
In 2012 the Wunderland also completed a series of diorama representing social conditions and life in various periods of German history.[citation needed].
Overview of the different sections[edit]
| Section | Name | Completion date | Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harz/Central Germany | August 2001 | c. 120 m2 |
| 2 | Knuffingen | August 2001 | c. 120 m2 |
| 3 | Austria | August 2001 | c. 60 m2 |
| 4 | Hamburg | November 2002 | c. 200 m2 |
| 5 | America | December 2003 | c. 100 m2 |
| 6 | Scandinavia | July 2005 | c. 300 m2 |
| 7 | Switzerland | November 2007 | c. 250 m2 |
| 8 | Knuffingen Airport | May 2011 | c. 150 m2 |
| 9 | Italy | End 2015 (under construction) | c. 170 m2 |
| 10 | France | 2017 (planned) | c. 130 m2 |
| 11 | England | 2019 (planned) | |
| 12 | Africa | 2020 (planned) |
Gallery[edit]
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View of the Hamburg section
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Ships sailing in real water in the Scandinavia layout
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A football stadium based on Volksparkstadion
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Las Vegas Strip night scene
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Control room
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In The Alps
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Railway bridge
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Railroad in Norway
In Popular Culture[edit]
Miniatur Wunderland has featured on the British Television Series James May's Toy Stories twice, with Sebastian and Gerrit helping BBC Top Gear presenter James May building an OO-scale Hornby model railway along the Tarka Trail abandoned railway between Barnstaple and Bideford.
It was visited in episode six of the BBC series Great Continental Railway Journeys, when the host, Michael Portillo visited the exhibition during his stay in Hamburg and painted a figure of himself. This figure was shown being placed on a platform, dressed in his distinctively colourful jacket and shirt, carrying a copy of Bradshaw's Guide painted red.
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Wunderland Facts – The Wunderland in Numbers". Retrieved 2011-01-27.
- ^ http://www.miniatur-wunderland.de/anlage/daten/fakten/
- ^ "Train Trip". Kidzworld.com. Retrieved 2009-04-05.
External links[edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Miniatur Wunderland. |
Coordinates: 53°32′38″N 9°59′20″E / 53.54389°N 9.98889°E
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