Ribbon Weaving Museum

The Ribbon Weaving Museum began in 1989 and is now part of the Museum Industiekultur Wuppertal. In 2020 it moved to the Nordstadt district, where it is housed in part of a five-storey former ribbon-weaving factory built in 1910 with a concrete frame and large windows. Over half the working population of Wuppertal at that time were employed in the textile and clothing industries, of which ribbon weaving and braiding was an important part. The factory was owned by Villbrandt & Zehnder and later worked for the Gold-Zack brand until 1960. The displays feature many working looms from the Jacquard era to recent automatic looms. Alongside them are images, documents and interactive exhibits to relate the history of weaving in the region. A traditional domestic ribbon-weaving workshop is reconstructed. Products on show include ribbons, labels, shoelaces and specialist items for sport, medicine, industry and personal protection. Visitors can go around with an audio tour or a personal guide.