The thematic range of the photographs digitized so far is immensely wide. In addition to big international topics, such as the Middle-East conflict or the events on Tienanmen Square in Beijing in 1989, the picture portal also presents photo stories from the fields of the economy, culture, sports and day-to-day life. The pictures were taken predominantly in Europe, in particular Germany. Thus, there are pictures of the resignation of Willy Brandt in 1974, of the German reunification in 1990 or of the trial of the Baader-Meinhof group in 1975, just as there are pictures of the Rolling Stones show in Cologne in 1976 or of Leonard Bernstein in Vienna in 1975.

The stern Photo Archive assumes a central role with respect to the tradition of the photographic heritage of the Federal Republic and far beyond. Its long-term importance for contemporary historical research and the conservation of the visual heritage can hardly be estimated too high. Chronologically, most of the digitized pictures currently are from the time between 1972 and 2001. The Bayerische Staatsbibliothek will further expand the picture portal in the coming years. Up to the end of 2025, a further two million pictures will be digitized and put online. As a follow-up project, it is planned to tackle another two million pictures.

Dr. Klaus Ceynowa, Director General of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek:

The digitization of the analogue stern Photo Archive is a gargantuan task which will keep us very busy in the coming years. I am all the more pleased that we have already crossed the one-million threshold, with a considerable part of the stern Photo Archive thus being available online.

Search in the picture portal can take place using various search and filter options, such as search terms based on the Integrated Authority File (GND) or various time and location filters. Moreover, all photo stories are pinned to a geographic location with the aid of a world map and can be retrieved from there comfortably. Users can place their license request directly out of the stern Photo Archive using a shopping cart function. The licensed pictures are provided via download link.

To the stern Photo Archive:
https://www.stern-fotoarchiv.de

About the Image Archive of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek
The Image Archive of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek comprises over 19 million images of a predominantly documentary character and with a contemporary historical emphasis. It is the largest image archive held by any public-sector institution in Germany. The main stock is constituted by the photo archive of the journal stern including more than 15 million pictures, which was taken over in 2019.
https://www.bsb-muenchen.de/sammlungen/bilder/fotoarchive/

Press release for download  (PDF, 126 KB)  (in German)

Contact
Dr. Cornelia Jahn
Bayerische Staatsbibliothek
Department of Maps and Images
Ludwigstrasse 16, 80539 Munich
Phone  +49 89 28638-2287
cornelia.jahn@bsb-muenchen.de

Ulrike Rehusch
D/Communication
Phone   +49 89 28638-2057
presse@bsb-muenchen.de