The Reconstructions of Konrad Zuse's Z3 Computer

Raul Rojas

The Reconstructions of Konrad Zuse's Z3 Computer

General Literature 2026-07-13 v1 Hardware Architecture History and Philosophy of Physics

Authors: Raul Rojas

Abstract

This paper reviews the various reconstructions of Konrad Zuse's Z3 computer, built in 1941. The first is the reconstruction made by Zuse himself in the 1960s, which is now housed at the Deutsches Museum in Munich. Second is the 2001 reconstruction, made in Berlin, and which has a didactic purpose. Third is the Z3r, a Z3 reconstruction built by Horst Zuse in honor of his father's 100th birthday. Fourth is the reconstruction by Christoph Traber in Switzerland. All of these machines strive to preserve the cultural heritage that the Z3 represents.

Keywords

Konrad Zuse Z3 computer reconstruction computer history cultural heritage Deutsches Museum

Cite

@article{arxiv.2607.13089,
  title  = {The Reconstructions of Konrad Zuse's Z3 Computer},
  author = {Raul Rojas},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2607.13089},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

7 pages, 4 figures