| History and responsibilities of the Luther Memorials Foundation of Saxony-Anhalt |
The legacy of Martin Luther and the Reformation are important to many people around the world. The Luther Memorials Foundation of Saxony-Anhalt is responsible for preserving and passing on this legacy. The foundation was created in 1997. It is responsible for four museums: the Luther House and the Melanchthon House in Wittenberg and the Luther Birthplace Museum and the Luther Death House Museum in Eisleben. All four houses were added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1996. The foundation maintains and develops the buildings, collections, and exhibitions.
Providing a diverse learning programme on the history of the Reformation is one of the foundation’s highest priorities. To achieve this purpose, our staff develop and organise exhibitions and scholarly conferences, catalogue and present the collections, and publish the results of their research. Tours of the exhibitions, lectures, and public readings round off the programme’s diverse array of activities. Cultural education represents a further key aspect of our learning programme. The foundation has developed diverse learning programmes in all four museums, which offer children and youths – but also adults – a playful atmosphere in which they can engage with the Reformation and become acquainted with its most important figures. 
The foundation's research programme particularly emphasises the analysis of the Reformation's visual influence and the history of the foundation’s own institutions as examples of Luther’s historical reception. Scholarly activities include research projects, workshops, and publications.
In 2007, the project office ‘Luther 2017’ was opened as an initiative of the foundation. This offers the foundation a central role in the preparations for the Anniversary of the Reformation in 2017, the 500th anniversary of Luther’s posting of the Ninety-Five Theses. |