Peter Mitterhofer’s groundbreaking typewriter inventions are on display at the Parcines Museum
Image gallery: Peter Mitterhofer Typewriter Museum
Parcines, in the Merano region, houses a museum dedicated to Peter Mitterhofer, the inventor of the typewriter. Born in Parcines village in 1822, this trained carpenter and joiner developed his first typewriter in 1864 and continued refining it until 1869.
His initial wooden models, however, received little attention until the advent of the first American typewriters, despite even being presented to the Imperial Court in Vienna. Peter Mitterhofer (1822-1893) only gained recognition as the inventor of the typewriter posthumously. In 1993, on the centenary of his death, this museum dedicated to him opened in his birthplace of Parcines.
Today, the Peter Mitterhofer Typewriter Museum (Schreibmaschinenmuseum Peter Mitterhofer) houses 2,000 exhibits across four floors, documenting over 100 years of typewriter development - from the first model in 1864 to typewriters of the 1980s. Dioramas and modern media enhance your understanding of the exhibits. Did you know that typewriters were manufactured until 2011? Only in that year did the last factory for mechanical typewriters close in India.
A highlight is the "Malling Hansen" (1867, Denmark), one of the most valuable typewriters in existence, and the first of five Mitterhofer models. Mitterhofer's fourth model can be admired at the Merano Municipal Museum in the Palais Mamming. How to get there: The Typewriter Museum is located in the centre of Parcines. There's a car park next door, also at the Piazza della Chiesa (Church Square). From Merano, you can reach Parcines by bus number 213.
Contact info
- Piazza della Chiesa / Kirchplatz 10 - 39020 - Parcines / Partschins
- +39 0473 967581
- info@typewritermuseum.com
Opening times
Despite careful control we cannot guarantee the correctness of the provided data.
Admission
€ 7.00 adults
€ 7.00 young people (17-18 years)
€ 6.30 seniors 65+
€ 6.30 groups (10 and more persons)
€ 2.00 students and young people (6-16 years)
free for children under 6 years
free for everyone on the 1st Sunday of the month
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family ticket:
€ 15.00 per family
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guided tour (10 and more persons, admission included):
€ 8.00 adults
€ 2.00 students
€ 1.00 audio guide (free of charge using QR code)
More information
Guided tours in German language are offered every Monday at 8.30 pm from June to October, in Italian language every Monday at 6 pm in July and August. Reservation is needed. Visits outside the opening hours and guided tours for groups are available upon request by phone.
* May 18, 2025: International Museum Day with free admission from 10 am to 5 pm, and book presentation by and with Matthias Schönwerger at 10 am
* November 30, 2025: Open Day at the Museum during the Parcines Christmas Market from 10 am to 6 pm - a mulled wine stand can be found at the Church Square
The Peter Mitterhofer Typewriter Museum stays open all year round, in summer (April to October) from Monday to Saturday with free admission every first Sunday of the month, and in winter (November to March) every Tuesday morning. It remains closed on public holidays.
Summer season start 2025 on the 1st of April, winter season start 2025/2026 on November 4.
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