State Library Unter den Linden

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State Library Unter den Linden
Prussian State Library

Prussian State Library

Data
place Berlin center
architect Ernst von Ihne
Client Wilhelm II.
Architectural style Neo-baroque
Construction year 1903-1914
height 28 m
Floor space 18,190 m²
Coordinates 52 ° 31 '4.2 "  N , 13 ° 23' 30.1"  E Coordinates: 52 ° 31 '4.2 "  N , 13 ° 23' 30.1"  E
particularities
largest building in the historical center of Berlin

The State Library Unter den Linden is a monument on the boulevard Unter den Linden 8 in the Berlin district of Mitte and as Haus Unter den Linden one of the two main buildings of the State Library in Berlin . Erected in the years 1903–1914 by Ernst von Ihne in neo -baroque style , until 1945 it was home to the Prussian State Library and the University Library as well as the Prussian Academy of Sciences . After severe damage in World War II and partial demolition in the GDRDuring 2005-2019 it was completely renovated and expanded. Since German reunification, it has housed parts of the Berlin State Library and the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences . The State Library Unter den Linden is one of the largest buildings in Berlin and the most important libraries in the world.

History and description

For the Royal Library , which was previously located in the opposite building on Opernplatz, a new building in the neo-baroque style was built by Ernst von Ihne in place of the Royal Marstall on behalf of Wilhelm II in the years 1903–1914 . Above the rusticated base, 12 floors rise on the inside, on the outside these are designed as a three-storey facade . The frontal view is structured with central risalits with Corinthian columns and side risalites with colossal pilasters . In addition to the tympanum relief "Art and technology pay homage to Athena" on the front, sculptures by Otto Lessing adorn the facade. The design of the interior corresponded then as now to the various uses. While the high and prestigious stairwells were provided with light stone plaster, the management rooms are equipped with dark parquet and dark wood paneling, while the former ballroom (today Wilhelm von Humboldt Hall) above the entrance gate and other event rooms are particularly lavishly lined.

In the Second World War , the dome and university reading room in particular, but also the linden dome, were badly damaged by bombs. The domed reading room was initially secured by an emergency roof in 1955, but then demolished together with the university reading room in 1977. In place of the historical reading rooms, which Ihne had created based on the models in Paris , London and Washington , four magazine towers were built, in which there was room for the permanent inventory growth, but which in no way compensated for the lack of a centrally located, spacious reading room. The main courtyard remained in its original state with fountains, paths and green areas. Its facade vegetation with wild grapevine probably dates back to the imperial era. The lanterns at the main entrances and the wrought iron bars in the Lindenhalle are also original. In the GDR era, the sculpture and the relief "Reading Workers" by Werner Stötzer were placed in the courtyard. Since reunification, the building has largely housed the Berlin State Library , while the library of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences is housed in the south-eastern wing . At 107 m wide and 170 m long, it is the largest building in the historic center of Berlin.

Renovation and expansion

From 2005 to 2019, the Unter den Linden State Library was extensively renovated and supplemented with new buildings for around 470 million euros according to plans by HG Merz . Before the start of the underground construction work for the new buildings - the general reading room designed as a glass cube, the Rara reading room, the safe magazines and the open-access magazine - the magazine towers were demolished in an elaborate process, after which a 5 m thick foundation base was placed at a depth of 13 m. The dome over the central projection was reconstructed true to the original , the barrel vault in the staircase hall and the dome in the vestibule were rebuilt in a simplified manner. A library museum is expected to be built on the ground floor by 2022. After relocating and merging the relocated stocks, the building was reopened on January 25, 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , it was only possible to hold a digital ceremony in the presence of Bundestag President Wolfgang Schäuble and Minister of State for Culture Monika Grütters . The house itself remains closed for use.

  • Opening ceremony with Kaiser Wilhelm II and director Adolf von Harnack , 1914

  • View of the building around 1900, in front of it the equestrian statue of Frederick the Great

  • View of the dome reading room around 1900

  • Dome reading room before the Second World War

  • View of the university reading room around 1900

  • University reading room before World War II

  • Triangular gable on the Unter den Linden front facade

  • Entrance to the Prussian Academy of Sciences

  • Entrance to the Prussian State Library

  • Fountain in the main courtyard

  • Main entrance in the courtyard

  • General reading room by HG Merz

literature

  • Oliver Sander: Ernst von Ihne (1847–1917) and his Berlin buildings. In: Jahrbuch Preußischer Kulturbesitz 1998, Volume 35. Gebr. Mann Verlag, Berlin 1999.

Web links

Commons : Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin (Unter den Linden)  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ https://www.bbr.bund.de/BBR/DE/Bauprojekte/Berlin/Kultur/Staatsbibliothek/UnterdenLinden/staatsbibliothekunterdenlinden.html
  2. ^ The new building of the Royal Library Berlin. In: Journal of Librarianship and Bibliography . Born 1908, 1st and 2nd issue
  3. ^ History of the building on Unter den Linden in the Berlin State Library.
  4. ↑ The new buildings | Berlin State Library. Retrieved October 6, 2018 .
  5. ↑ Bernhard Schulz, Berlin's New Cathedral of Knowledge , tagesspiegel.de of January 25, 2021, accessed on January 26, 2021.
  6. ↑ Annabelle Steffes-Halmer: Berlin State Library: Long-awaited reopening . In: dw.com, January 25, 2021 (accessed January 25, 2021).