No washing machine

Tags

art., beijing, Berlin, history, life, Rome, St-Petersburg

Our washing machine died with a clunk and a whine last Thursday, we were able to secure a new washing machine almost within one hour. The drawback delivery takes 7 days, oh my! So the clothing has been piling up as well as sheets and towels. We are really dependent on this machine, now we know. But the delivery will be made by Friday so patience and no panic.

I really miss good conversation with friends face to face and the laughs and gossip. Zoom is NOT the same thing.

Scaffolding coming down this week at the main gate portal of the City Palace. Friday is the capping off of the building which can be followed on webcam. Starting at 6 am Berlin time, weather permitting.

https://cam01.berlinerschloss-webcam.de

For the last few postings I have been writing about the City Palace in Berlin and its final phase of re-construction. You may have wondered why so much interest in this one building. In fact I have been following several other projects in Europe.

One such projects is Buckingham Palace in London, the Official Residence of the Queen. There is little info on what is going on, but it is a major refit of the place from plumbing to electrical system to cleaning and painting and general repairs. Rooms have been dismantled and furniture and paintings removed for safe keeping. The Queen left London because of the pandemic but also because her London Residence was under repair and not fit to live in due to all the noise and workmen etc… Windsor is her real home, private and comfy. She and her husband only live in a suite of rooms in one wing of the Castle and not in the entire place as you might see it from the outside, still it is pretty grand. Many other people live at Windsor in what is term Grace and Favour apartments. The Queen also has other relatives live in London at Kensington Palace and St-James Palace again in apartments, all are at the pleasure of Her Majesty.

Another project is the Alexander Palace built in 1793 in an Italian/Palladian style in Tsarkoye Selo outside St-Petersburg, the work is now reaching completion after many years of complete reconstruction of what was essentially a ruined building. The last private home of Tsar Nicholas II and his wife and children before their arrest and deportation in 1917. This has been a massive work of research and archeology, restoration of furniture, original fabrics, flooring, tiling, etc. all this made possible because of voluminous archives kept on the building. This site has a huge following in Russia and around the world.

The Roman Forum is another place I love to explore and read about, about 95 years ago it became the pet project of Benito Mussolini who poured financial resources and had the best academic work on unearthing this area of what was ancient Rome. To this day several Universities and team of archeologist work for years and sometimes a life time on one area. Even now with the building of the new Metro Line crossing the Forum under Via Dei Fori Imperiali more treasures are discovered. I had the good fortune to visit some of those sites being under study and excavation, it is a real marvel.

While in Beijing, I visited various sites around the former Imperial Capital, temples, palaces and the Forbidden City compound. I lived there about 3 years prior to the Olympics. The City itself was under massive construction and re-building. Entire neighbourhoods of 3 million people each would be vacated in a matter of 48 hours with the help of the Police and Army. The Temple of Heaven and the great park around it was a favourite site. The Communist Party with the increase in tourism re-discovered the roots of Chinese culture and its historical past. So recreation was the name of the game, unfortunately so much had been lost between 1967-1976 under Mao ills advised but politically convenient cultural revolution, that doing studies and repairing the damage proved difficult, so the repairs were done very quickly and often of poor quality. What really mattered to the Communist party was money from Western tourists and pushing a re-written history of China always glorifying the Party and the leadership.

In Jordan, I would visit just outside Amman about 35 km away the antic city of Jerash or Gerasa in the Bible. Built by the Romans and prospering as an important commercial link and military city, the Jordanian Government had archeologists work at restoring the extensive ruined city, its temples and theatres. There was a lot of archeological material artefacts just lying on the ground forgotten by time.

Istanbul and the Topkapi Palace grounds is also well worth exploring and how well preserve it is, including the treasury with its incredible amounts of precious stones. If you take a look in the once private areas you will discover a Polo Pavilion and grounds enjoyed by the Sultan, the entire place as a very Oriental feel. The Turkish people migrated from Central Asia one thousand years ago, keeping their Oriental culture.

I am endlessly fascinated by architecture, archeology and factual history. It has always been a hobby of mine.

What’s new, this and that

Tags

Barbershop, Berlin, Bread, cuisine, Food, sausage rolls, sweets

For the last few days we have entered into the Phase 2 of re-opening and in a few days 1 June Phase 3 will take place. Meaning that life will return to a NEW normal but we have to keep social distancing and avoid gatherings. Restaurants will re-open for in dining room service but we are not going.

So a few days ago our barber re-opened and lucky us we got an early appointment and after 10 weeks got a haircut. I feel so much better now, more civilized.

 

We have also been having some warm sunny weather with normals around 18C feeling much warmer in the direct sun light. This week it is going up to 23C which is perfect weather.

Our two little monsters Nicky and Nora are scheduled for the groomer on 15 June, they need a good grooming. They also need their annual shots and the Vet has been called for an appointment. I also hope to have our winter tires removed this week, I usually do that around 15 April but it was not possible given the situation.

Will is making amongst other bake goods, Peanut Butter Bread, he is also looking at a recipe for Orange grind bread from 1932 when people used up everything eatable so not to waste food. He made yesterday some wonderful sausage rolls, and puff pastry dessert with apples, brown sugar, butter, almonds raisins and pears, a nice combination.

We are also thinking of preparing our flower boxes for our terrace and this is a project for June when the weather will be warm and nights in the 15C range.

So lots going on.

I leave you here with a photo of the 16 ton Lantern which will be installed on top the dome of the City Palace Berlin (AKA Humboldt Forum) this coming Friday 29 June according to a story in the Berliner MorgenPost.

This photo is around 1920 in Berlin, showing a man in the Lantern looking across to the Lutheran Cathedral of Berlin and the Museums. The winged angels are life size. The dome of the Cathedral appears as it was then before its destruction in 1944. The dome today is more modern in design.

Is it Friday already?

Tags

Berlin, Cheese, Friday, life, Macaroni, Sword, tourism, week

The weeks are moving faster and faster, the days are long, strange way time is moving, is it all part of this Pandemic. My sense of time has changed and it is related in part to the fact that there is little to do and tomorrow well there is nothing to do. We have to invent activities.

So the mighty Island is closed off to non Islanders, that is people who do not live here permanently and have the paperwork to prove it. The Government of PEI today decreed a State of Emergency which empowers the police to assist the public service in their duties, this decree comes on top of another decree of Public Health Emergency. Both are valid until 30 April 2020 and will most probably be extended beyond that date.

All this means that no one can come to PEI to occupy their Summer Season Cottage, in the Summer we usually have a surge of tourists, many from the USA who have been coming for years to PEI to occupy their second home. Not this year, no that won’t happen. The Sea Bridge, the ferries, all ports and harbours are closed and under surveillance to prevent people from entering PEI. Some have already argued that this goes against Section 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms but given our current circumstances it is an acceptable and reasonable infringement on this right to restrict movement.

As an Islander and like many other people living here permanently I am happy with this decision by my Government on this matter. We have been spared the worst of this Pandemic and want to keep it that way. As of 16 April 2020, PEI has 3 active cases, no deaths and no hospitalizations.

ABOUT MAC AND CHEESE

I have been having this discussion on Kraft Macaroni and Cheese with fellow blogger Moving with Mitchell. movingwithmitchell.wordpress.com  who has been delighting us with tales of culinary delight…  So tonight I phoned my little sister who lives in Brooklyn and who loves Mac & Cheese, to ask her if she remembers that Kraft Mac and Cheese dinners congeal quickly once they cool. She confirmed that yes, it is better to make it in your crockpot and simply eat it directly from said crockpot while it is hot and not bother with plates and eating at the dinner table. I should have known this but this fact escaped me. Then I remembered that when at home and I was babysitting her and my younger brother I would make proper macaroni and cheese not the box stuff. This did not prevent them from accusing me in front of our Mom of trying to poison them, such grateful siblings I have.

My sister works at a big palliative care hospital in the Bronx and she is doing fine, though a bit tired. Nonetheless it is a stressful situation for her and her husband who also works at the same facility.

ON OTHER TOPICS

I found this sketch of what the Humboldt Forum former City Palace in Berlin will look like once opened later this year. The dome and the large former chapel below is now called in this diagram the Hall of the Sword Bearer, I do not know why this name is given. The other interesting part which I did see during excavations of the former parking lot in 1998 is the ruined underground portion of what was once the Palace kitchens, it will be possible to visit them, I remember the walls covered in white porcelain tiles.

I do have a Prussian Artillery Officer’s sword, c.1889. It was given to me around 1999 as a Birthday gift by a friend when we lived in Poland. It has the name of the manufacturer on the blade, J.R.O. Brecht, Hoelieferant, (supplier), Berlin. Preussischer Kavalerie-Offizier- Säbel mit Löwenkopf.

 

Photos

Tags

Architecture, Berlin, City Palace

Here are some photo old and new to give you an idea of what is happening at the City Palace Berlin now known as the Humboldt Forum set to open in September 2020.

This is the rebuilt City Palace, the South East corner. The photo below is the way it was prior to the Palace being bombed 1944 and destroyed 1958.

Same South East corner. The Eastern portion has a the private Palace garden with a fountain and the old quarters of 1445 where the Royal Family lived. The architect proposed the modern Eastern look to please the politicians in the Bundestag.

Here is a photo of Portal 1 on the South Side. It has been rebuilt exactly as it was. This photo dates from 1890. Note the two Grenadier guards and sentry boxes.

This photo is truly ancient around 1865 when the front Eosander portal (West) of the City Palace faced a row of houses which will be demolished around 1885 to make way for the monumental memorial to the first German Emperor Wilhelm I. The gate is also interesting, when this photo was taken it was the City Palace of the King of Prussia. Above the columned gateway there is no Coat of Arms and 4 statues are missing a top the columns. Kaiser Wilhelm II will have modifications made to make this portal more grand befitting his new station in life as Emperor of Germany and King of Prussia.

The memorial to his grandfather was demolished by the Communist government in 1958 and will not be rebuilt in the current plan.

The monument is like a seesaw to symbolize German Unity and people will be able to walk on it as it rocks back and forth. Quite the modern concept.

 

Things in the future

Tags

art., Berlin, Germany, Humboldt Forum, James Simon

Today I got my certificate for bartending from the PEI Liquor Control Commission. Why on Earth would I want to do that? Well I thought it would be a practical thing to have, I do not intend to work in a bar but at the Club if we should have a last minute emergency then I could help out. I got a 90% success rate on my exam. Because of my family hotel background I have worked in Hotels in Europe and North America while I was still in school. It was a good thing to learn and my work experience has stayed with me all these years. Doing the exam was easy, a lot of the concepts I understood and knew, so this is just another feather in my cap.

So I have been surfing the net for pictures of another topic I have been watching for more than 20 years. That is the reconstruction of the City of Berlin, both the East and West sector of what was once a divided city. There are  several blogs both in German and in English on reconstruction in the German Capital.

It is interesting to read about the work of artists, stone masons, archivists, historians and politicians. Some very good photos are taken to show what is being done. Historical places are being re-born some 75 years after they were destroyed by war.

Many other cities in Germany have been through a re-birth since reunification in 1989. Dresden, Potsdam, Hamburg, Frankfurt, etc. In all cases armies of artisans are at work and the public not only in Germany but in the world give donations to help with the restoration efforts, the EU and the Federal Government of Germany are actively involved.

But while many historical buildings are being re-built, they are not returning to their old usage or made up to look like museums to life under the Hohenzollern Dynasty. In most cases the interior of such buildings are totally re-imagine to fit into our world today.  The Humboldt Forum will be housed in the newly re-built Imperial City Palace,  the outside is the original  Baroque architecture but the landscaping around it will be reflecting a modern urban green landscape, recently Honey Locust Trees measuring 5 meters have planted on the North Side of the Palace. The inside is ultra-modern and will be a museum to World civilization.  The Princesses Palais built in 1773 and destroyed in 1944 was rebuilt and is now called Palais Populaire. Again the outside is original Baroque reflecting the other building around it, but the inside will be presenting modern contemporary art. Many churches have also been rebuilt on the outside in the original style of the 18th century to reflect their history but the inside is modern to reflect what happened and what lesson to draw from destruction and war.  Few in Germany today wish to celebrate either the Bismarck era or the two disastrous world wars. Germany today looks forward with a progressive view of itself. Along Unter Den Linden, a palatial avenue with the Fredericanus Forum, which is an ensemble of buildings on the avenue  built at the time of the reign of Frederick II the Great, so every building has his imprint. The Zeughaus or Arsenal is a pinkish baroque building, now the German History Museum, the State Opera c.1742, recently renovated is also in that pink colour with baroque statues. Other palaces like the one occupied by Prince Henry, brother of Frederick II is the seat of the Humboldt University since 1810. So in many ways Berlin is not what people expect, it is a city of the Arts, music (techno is very popular) and Culture, parks, lakes and greenery.

So here goes:

The dome of the City Palace under completion, a little film about it explains that each sheet of copper some 1000 square meters of it  must be hammered into place, it should be completed in about a month. Then the great lantern will be brought by helicopter to be installed on top, that should be quite the feat of engineering given its size. The same was done in Dresden for the lantern of the FrauenKirche at 80 meters above ground.

One of the honey locust trees being re-planted on the North Side of the reconstructed City Palace now called Humboldt Forum slated to open in October 2020. Trees did grow in that area prior to 1939.

Immediately across the street is the Lutheran Cathedral and the Lust Garten and 5 museums. One new museum has opened in the last few months, the James Simon Museum dedicated to the collection of James Simon (1851-1932) who was a great benefactor to the Berlin Museums through his lavish donations. The famous Nefertiti bust was a gift from James Simon and is on display in the gallery amongst many precious objects he donated. His family were Jewish entrepreneurs in cotton and textiles. He was also an advisor to Kaiser Wilhelm II on art and archeology.

Many of the works of reconstruction or new buildings are the work of non-german architects like David Chipperfield, Franco Stella or Norman Foster. They bring a new modern view and an international spirit, a goal the Federal Government of Germany is pursuing.

The James Simon Gallery in front of the Neues Museum rebuilt and re-interpreted by David Chipperfield. This international spirit also extends to museum directors like Neil MacGregor Director of the Humboldt Forum formerly of the British Museum. He has recently retired and replaced by Hartmut Dorgerloh formerly of the Prussian Palaces and Garden Foundation.

I really like Berlin for all that it has to offer and for its atmosphere, a very dynamic city.

 

 

A view

Tags

baroque, Berlin, City Palace, Frederick II, Humboldt Forum

One of the great avenues of the world, Unter den Linden (under the linden tree), love walking down this avenue from the Brandenburg Gate to the Island where all the museums and City Palace is located. The avenue is lined with palaces, a University, Opera house, Embassies and 5 star Hotels.

A lot of work has been done since 1989 on the avenue. Including re-installing the old street light designed in the late 19th century at a cost of 60,000 Euros per . Here we see the equestrian statue of Frederick II The Great riding down the avenue. Originally this avenue was the ceremonial street starting at the Gate and ending at the Palace. It was also used to ride into the hunting grounds of the King of Prussia just beyond the Gate in the Tiergarten (520 acres) the best loved park of the city. The pink building in the photo was built by Frederick II it’s the StaatsOpern Berlin built in 1741 and completely restored in the last 5 years. Baroque building of the era usually have soft colors of pink or yellow. Interiors are painted in the favourite colours of Frederick II and used during his reign, green and gold, white and gold or black and gold. Those same colours found their way into his regimental flags. Frederick II is ever present in the centre of the City, he build and designed the whole area during his reign from 1740-1786.

the re-construction of the City Palace will be finished by the end of the year. It will house a museum, library, meetings rooms, conference halls, a restaurant and is now called the Humboldt Forum. A new subway station is also in the final stages behind those barricades.

One of the portals on the North Side of the Palace. Re-built with all of its baroque details.

the dome of the chapel with men working at preparing the footings to receive the Lantern decorated with angels which will be installed shortly once the dome’s covering in copper is completed.

Sketch of the Lantern atop the dome,

Interior portal in one of the interior court. The cartouche F R is for Fredericus Rex.

All the details and figurines you seen are giant and sculpted in sandstone as were the originals.

I hope to return to Berlin for a visit in 2021.

 

 

 

 

One of my favourite stores

Tags

Berlin, KaDeWe, Nazi, shopping, Tietz family

There is always a store or stores which are favourites for their wares on offer and the service they give customers. In Italy I had several such stores, elegant, beautiful and with a certain flair. In London I like Liberty with its Tudor revival architecture on Regent street or Selfridges on Oxford street.

In Berlin I like KaDeWe as it is called by the locals but whose name is Kaufhaus des Westens on Tauentzienstrasse the closest U-Bahn station is Wittenbergplatz. Kadewe.de

With over 60,000 square metres of selling space and more than 380,000 articles available on 7 floors and with a beautiful restaurant on the roof. The store was founded in 1907 their motto is Live the Lifestyle you love.

The so-called “Luxury Boulevard” is also situated here, with Bulgari, Burberry, Cartier, Céline, Chanel, Chopard, Dior, Fendi, Gucci, Hermès, Miu Miu, Montblanc, Longchamp, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Rolex, Tiffany & Co., Tod’s, Vertu, Wellendorff and Yves Saint Laurent . So many beautiful things to look at and possibly buy.

The story of KaDeWe goes like this, when the store opened Berlin was the capital of the German Empire, a cosmopolitan and crowded city with 800.000 inhabitants, full of museums, theatres and auditoriums, provided with a notable infrastructure it was a rich, proud and happy city.

KaDeWe located in Tauentzienstrasse, near to the fashionable Ku´damm was a symbol of  that spirit, the golden times: an elegant place to spend time in the beauty salon or the tearoom and to buy tailored dresses or delicatessen and caviar in the famous food court.

Kadewe, survived the First World War disaster, it was even enlarged in the uncertain times of the Weimar Republic, but like the city it was a victim of the Nazi Dictatorship: the jewish owners the Hermann Tietz group was forced in 1933 to sell the Department Store due to the boycott of the banks that refused to grant any credit after the implementation of the Nuremberg race laws. Within a few days, the Tietz family had sold all of its stock in the company to its creditors, among them Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, and the Dresdner Bank, for somewhere around 10% of their market value. The family eventually left Germany for the USA. The Dresdner Bank promoted the store Manager to CEO and Georg Karg profited from this war opportunity.  In 1949 the Tietz family received some financial compensation and 3 buildings from Georg Karg, they rebuilt part of their commercial holdings in Germany with success. In 2008 the family received more compensation on bank account holdings which had been confiscated in 1934 by the Nazi regime.

After years of Nazi management of Kadewe, in 1943 an American warplane crashed into it, the building burnt to the ground, a ruin until 1950, it became a metaphor of the ruined city.

The restoration of the KaDeWe building was a symbol of the resurgence of West Berlin, the new beginning, it also became a hated monument to consumption in East Berlin.

After the German reunification in 1989, the Department Store became once again the best-known in Germany and the largest one in the European continent with 60,000 square metres of sales floors. The store was completely renovated between 2004-2007 of the centennial anniversary, nowadays is the third most visited attraction in Berlin after the Bundestag (Reichstag) and the Brandenburg Gate.

The roof top restaurant and the food hall with a Moet Champagne bar to relax from all the shopping. Today KaDeWe is owned by the Central Group from Thailand. If you visit Berlin go and shop at KaDeWe it is a very nice experience.

A beautiful painting

Tags

Adolf Senff, Berlin, painting, Staatlicher Museum

Adolf Senff (1785-1863) started out as a theologian in Leipzig, before working as a private tutor to the children and students of painter Gerhard von Kügelgens (1772– 1820). Although he was already active as a painter and portraitist in Leipzig from 1813–14, it was only after the war on France, for which he volunteered, that he truly dedicated himself to the arts. He lived in Rome between 1816 and 1848 where he befriended the famous sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770–1844).

Night with her children Sleep and Death.

I think this is a beautiful painting of Night presented as a motherly figure with her two children who represent the human condition. Painting at the Staatlicher Museum in Berlin.

 

Berlin

Tags

Bear, Berlin, history, Hohenzollern, MacDonogh

I am re-reading a book by Giles MacDonogh on Berlin, a portrait of its history. I read this book some years ago in 1997 the year it was published. This 20 year old book on Berlin is somewhat dated now given the incredible transformation the city has undergone since then.  My first visit to Berlin goes back to 1998 at a time when the City government, the Senate and Federal government of Germany where planning a massive re-construction of the Eastern sector now vacated from Communist rule.

I saw the first changes and re-construction of old building some of which had been completely obliterated during the war 1939-1945. We went back many times since to Berlin and it is truly a beautiful city, very people friendly.

Berlin today is a world city of culture, politics, media and science. Its economy is based on high-tech firms and the service sector, encompassing a diverse range of creative industries, research facilities, media corporations and convention venues. Berlin serves as a continental hub for air and rail traffic and has a highly complex public transportation network. The metropolis is a popular tourist destination. Significant industries also include pharmaceuticals, biomedical engineering, clean tech, biotechnology, construction and electronics.

Modern Berlin is home to world renowned universities, orchestras, museums, entertainment venues and is host to many sporting events. Its urban setting has made it a sought-after location for international film productions. The city is well known for its festivals, diverse architecture, nightlife, contemporary arts and a high quality of life. Since the 2000s Berlin has seen the emergence of a cosmopolitan entrepreneurial scene.

The city is first mentioned in 1237 as Berl, not a German word but a name derived from the old Slavic Wend word meaning Marsh or Marsh land. Slavs inhabited the area of Brandenburg for many centuries. German speaking population also lived in the area of Spandau around 900 and used the german word Bärlein or little bear as a name for the congregations of small villages around islands on the Havel and Spree rivers which cross the modern Berlin today. So the association of the little black bear became the symbol of the City of Berlin.

Berlin is dotted with lakes and forest and back then they were mostly fishing villages. The region was never part of the Roman Empire and did not benefit from Roman city planning schemes seen elsewhere in Western and Southern Europe. In the middle-ages no cathedral or great building existed, it was a backwater. The only significant buildings from the 13th century that can be seen today are the Nikolaikirche 1230 and the Marienkirche 1270 by Alexander Platz. The arrival in Berlin in 1415 of the Hohenzollern family will see the first construction of a Castle in 1443 on the Spree river and this will be the seat of the family until their fall from power in 1918. Enlarging many times their family palace as their power grew.

The Hohenzollern were Counts from the Southern region of Swabia in Bavaria where the family still has two large palace-castles Hohenzollern and in Sigmaringen. At first they were rulers of Brandenburg, then elevated to the dignity of Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, then by 1701 Kings in Prussia and in 1871 Emperors of Germany. Not bad for a bunch of mercenaries who played their cards carefully ingratiating themselves with the Holy Roman Emperor in Nuremberg.

The book also speaks of the people of Berlin, the various ethnic groups and the economic and social development of the city. With the wars of religions raging across Europe with the Reformation movement, the rulers of Brandenburg invited all those feeling persecution to come and settle in Berlin, religious tolerance was the official policy of the State. First French Huguenots arrived by the hundreds from France but also from other parts of Western Europe where they were persecuted. Then Jews started to arrive from all over Europe and later by the 19th century from Russia fleeing the Tsarist Pogroms. Then the Turkish guest workers who form a large ethnic group in Germany today.

The goal of all this immigration was to make Berlin and the region of the Brandenburg and then the Prussian Kingdom an economic powerhouse, a centre of culture and the arts. The Hohenzollern followed a careful policy of mixing and integrating people.

MacDonogh weaves a very interesting picture of the city, rich in details on its politics, architecture, history and society.  He did a lot of research on the city with the help of his German friends who themselves have a close connection to the city. He ends the story of the city in 1989 with the fall of the wall. I wish he updated the book so many things have happened in the last 30 years.

 

 

Staatsoper Berlin

Tags

1742, Berlin, opera, renovations, Staatsoper, Unter den Linden

The State Opera House, Unter den Linden in Berlin re-opened last week after many years of reconstruction.

Since autumn 2010, the most lavish renovation measures in the history of the Berliner Staatsoper – the Berlin State Opera – have been taking place at a cost of roughly € 296 million (gross). Contributing to the general renovation are the German federal government with about € 200 million as well as friends and patrons of the Staatsoper Unter den Linden with € 3 million.

Following public debates about the redesign of the auditorium, the architect HG Merz was commissioned to renovate the historic monument. The ensemble of buildings comprising the Staatsoper was very much in need of a general overhaul. While complying with listed building requirements, structural defects are therefore being remedied and the antiquated building equipment updated in line with modern safety requirements. The accessibility, air-conditioning and fire protection have been improved. The outer appearance of the opera house will, however, remain the same when viewed from a pedestrian perspective. The volume of the auditorium is being enlarged so as to improve the acoustics. To achieve this, the hall is being expanded upwards within the existing building structure by raising the historic ceiling some 16 feet or 5 meters.

The opera house was opened in 1742 as a court opera house, and experienced its first premiere in the still uncompleted building. This thus saw the start of the more than 250-year successful collaboration between the Berliner Staatsoper and the current Berliner Staatskapelle.

The architect Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff was commissioned to design the building. He conceived the opera in the Palladian style. The King Frederick II selected a fortress site near the Kronprinzenpalais where he lived. By placing it on the city’s main axis – the Unter den Linden boulevard – and not as would be usual within the palace complex, this created Europe’s first independent theatre building as a cultural expression of the Enlightenment.

The building, which was conceived as a nave, comprises the Apollo Hall (banqueting hall, foyer), the Theatre Hall (auditorium, ballroom) and the Corinthian Hall (stage and concert hall). Together with the Kronprinzenpalais, the Prinzessinnenpalais and the Zeughaus, the court opera house was the fourth prestigious building on Unter den Linden.

Just a few steps away on the Museum Island the re-construction of the City Palace is nearing completion and will open in 2019. Thus the ensemble of all the buildings built by Frederick II the Great will be complete once more on Unter den Linden reflecting the Age of Enlightenment. Berlin once again is an elegant capital full of history and culture a pleasure to visit.