Archival holdings
Online access
The archive holdings are electronically indexed and digitised. A growing number of manuscripts are freely accessible in our virtual reading room. For protected documents, you can submit a request for access after registering in the Virtual Reading Room.
Thomas Mann documents: All rights reserved S. Fischer Verlag GmbH
Digital copies online: rights of use
All copyrights and rights of use to the work of Thomas Mann are owned up to and including 2025 by S. Fischer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main. In consultation and cooperation with the community of heirs and their spokesperson Prof. Dr. Frido Mann as well as with the S. Fischer Verlag, digital copies of a selection of original documents are already available in the virtual reading room. An overview of these documents can be found here.
The use of the offered digital copies is permitted for private use.
In the case of a publication, the permissions of the Thomas Mann Archive (tma@library.ethz.ch) and the S. Fischer Verlag has to be obtained.
- Small licences and reproduction permissions via external page Frankfurt Rights
If you have any questions, please write to external page permissions@fischerverlage.de - Theatre/readings/film/audio etc. via external page FISCHER Theater- und Medien Verlag GmbH
Reproduction copies will be made available by the Thomas Mann Archive of ETH Zurich after approval by the S. Fischer Verlag.
Handwritten documents
Numerous archival documents exist in the handwriting of Thomas Mann and not in transcription or publication. In preparation for your visit to the archives, it is recommended that you familiarise yourself with the manuscript of "Joseph in Egypt" (3rd volume of "Joseph and his brothers").
Photographs
Copyright-free photographs can be researched online in the catalogue of the Thomas Mann Archive on the E-Pics platform and downloaded free of charge. Photographs with current copyrights can only be researched and viewed in the reading room of the archive.