Learn the history of one of Berlin’s most special places and take a look behind the scenes at the Humboldt Forum. This short guide in German presents certain aspects of the building’s exhibitions, events, as well as its educational offers.
The past, present, and future all come together at the Humboldt Forum, and this can be felt at every turn. The building is a direct successor to two other historic structures—the Royal Palace and the Palace of the Republic. A brief review of the building’s history will take you on a journey through the centuries. Find out what Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt have to do with the building named after them.
This guide offers an entertaining overview of the building’s architecture and most important topics, as well as those who work here.
Also available in English.
edited by the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
published by Prestel, 2020
22 x 12 cm
96 pages with numerous illustrations, photos, and room plans
Modern, multifunctional, on everyone’s lips: This high-quality, German-language book portrays the Humboldt Forum’s development, construction, and visions. Bright illustrations accompany texts written by experts from the four partner institutions, which give you some insights into the building’s recent but eventful history.
The book includes the debates surrounding the building’s reconstruction, facts about its architecture, history, historical tracks from 800 years, its extensive cultural, educational and recreational offerings as well as much more.
The photographs, illustrations, room plans, and sketches make this book a perfect reminder of your visit to the Humboldt Forum. Gift it and make your friends excited about their own visits here.
Also available in English.
hardcover with dust jacket
edited by the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
published by Prestel, 2020
32.5 x 24.5 cm
248 pages with numerous historical illustrations, photographs, graphics, sketches and room plans
From swamp to cultural hotspot: Four exhibition areas in the Humboldt Forum, covering over 1,500 sqm, tell the story of the site and how it is deeply embedded in Berlin's urban history.
This compact exhibition guide in German provides an overview of selected key topics while also showing and explaining the must-see exhibits. In addition to summarising 800 years of the building’s past and the city’s political history, it also includes illustrations of the building’s historical predecessors. This exhibition guide does not only take readers on a tour of the exhibition areas “History of the Site” and “Flashbacks” but also to the sculpture hall and the palace cellar.
Written by the exhibition’s curators, this entertaining read is an ideal companion before, during, or after your visit.
Also available in English.
edited by the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
published by Prestel, 2020
22 x 12.3 cm
184 pages with numerous historical illustrations, photos, and graphics
This premium floor lamp, designed according to historical models, is a very special home accessory. An eyecatcher in every room, this exclusive design is based on the lights that once hung in the Palace of the Republic.
Known in those days colloquially as “Erich's lamp shop”, the Palace of the Republic was built between 1973 and 1976 under Erich Honecker’s leadership. Until 1990, it was both the seat of the GDR parliament and a popular leisure and cultural centre. The generous lamp installations used to ensure that the foyer and staircase glowed brightly day and night. Many people who visited the Palace of the Republic still remember the impression that the lights made on them.
The floor lamp with 12 globes was produced in a very limited edition and is exclusively available here.
Ivory fascinates. As long as 40,000 years ago people carved mammoth tusks into artful figures and musical instruments, and it remains popular as a material to this day.
Ivory polarises. Severed elefant tusks represent both injustice and violence. The exploitation of man and nature, the imminent extinction of the elephant, as well as poaching and organised crime are all phenomena which we associate with the use of ivory today.
The publication approaches the subject critically and poses questions about our responsibility in our dealings with both animal and material.
Published by Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
The Humboldt Forum is a place of history and research as well as a place of inclusion and to make new experiences. With 14 touch-images and text in large print, Braille, and simple language, this comprehensive book tells the story of the site from the 13th century until the present day.
What once began as a small Dominican monastery would over the centuries become one of Berlin’s most important places. Use your fingertips, eyes or ears to help you embark on a special eight-stage journey through time.
The book also comes with an audio version. Please click here for more information.
The book was produced in collaboration with members of the Arbeitskreises Kultur und Freizeit im Allgemeinen Blinden- und Sehbehindertenverein Berlin gegr. 1874 e. V., a cultural working group for the blind and visually impaired.
edited by the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss, 2020
26.2 x 44.2 cm
64 pages
texts in large print, Braille and simple language
14 illustrations, 6 deep-draw films, and touch-print
The city’s history on 135 pages: Sebastian Strombach, architect and comic illustrator, uses a building as an example to tell the story of how Berlin grew from what used to be marshland into the city it is today. With comic sequences and large-format cityscape panoramas covering the time between the Ice Age and the present day, he brings the Berlin Palace, its architecture, symbolism as well as its political significance throughout the centuries to the fore.
Readers learn the eventful past of the building, its inhabitants, and the entire city in a witty, thoughtful, and creative way by taking a stroll through history with the author. On the way, by mixing well-known with lesser-known facts, read about each era’s overarching historical events.
The lovingly made and highly detailed black and white drawings are an unusual approach to discovering the site’s turbulent history.
The Humboldt Forum’s predecessor: This blue unisex t-shirt features a multicoloured graphic representation of the Palace of the Republic. Take a piece of architectural history home with you and enjoy its trendy design.
Once the seat of the GDR parliament, it was also a popular venue for cultural events, famous far beyond Berlin’s city limits. After the Berlin Palace was demolished in 1950, it was replaced with the Palace of the Republic. Built between 1973 and 1976, many people still have fond memories today of this architecturally interesting building with its diverse tourism and leisure facilities.
This exclusively designed classic souvenir is made of organic cotton, is vegan and fair-traded.
100% organic cotton
multicolour print
certificates: G.O.T.S. certified, Fair Wear Foundation, PETA Approved Vegan, STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®
3.000 Figurative Sculptures ans Reliefs 22.000 Sandstone Blocks 750 Metres of Restored Façades 3,5 Million Bricks
Encounter the architecture and sculptural work of Andreas Schlüter’s masterful façades and those of his successor Eosander von Göthe in breath-taking new photographs by Leo Seidel: the restored Berlin Palace in the centre of the capital is both a monument to the Baroque building and a vibrant new city complex for culture. With the palace, the urban reference point for the historic centre of the city between the boulevard Unter den Linden and the Spree Island has returned. The magnificent photographs and multifaceted texts by authors who, as participants in this major project, look behind the scenes, tell of the diversity and significance of the Baroque sandstone façades, their technical and handcrafted reconstruction, and the architectural conception of the building.
Published by Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
Contributions by Hans-Dieter Hegner, Kathrin Lange, Bernd Wolfgang Lindemann, Franco Stella, Peter Stephan, Bernhard Wolter
A practical eyecatcher with retro charm: This lightweight, break-proof enamel cup with a black rim depicts the Palace of the Republic’s iconic façade.
The seat of the former GDR parliament was also a popular venue for cultural events, famous far beyond Berlin’s city limits. After the Berlin Palace was demolished in 1950, it was replaced with the Palace of the Republic. Built between 1973 and 1976, many people still have fond memories today of this architecturally interesting building with its diverse tourism and leisure facilities.
As each enamel mug is unique, it may have some very minor faults or bumps which give each cup its own charm. It can be used indoors and outdoors for hot and cold drinks.
Let the seeds do the talking. Just scatter the flower seeds wherever you wish and make your garden or town a little more colourful. With plenty of water and some sunshine, it won’t take long until some beautiful wild flowers bloom. As the natural scientist Alexander von Humboldt once said: “So man may enjoy everywhere the nourishing plant”.
The 15 seed balls are packaged in a decorative, sustainable cardboard box designed by the Salapanga creative agency with Berlin schoolchildren for a cultural project aimed at encouraging creative involvement with current research.
Addressing colonial history and (post)colonial continuities is a major challenge for the Humboldt Forum, and will decisively shape the activities of this cultural institution. This volume features essays and conversations of prominent museum experts from around the world who have supported and advised the Humboldt Forum in its development. Through their statements, they take part in international discussions such as the intense debate about provenance and restitution of ethnological collections.
Includes contributions from George Okello Abungu (Nairobi), Kwame Anthony Appiah (New York), Philipp Blom (Vienna), Hartmut Dorgerloh (Berlin), Rita Eder (Mexico City), Hu Wei (Shanghai), Jyotindra Jain (New Delhi), Lars-Christian Koch (Berlin), Lee Chor Lin (Singapore), Neil MacGregor (London), Natalia Majluf (Lima), Wayne Modest (Amsterdam), Nazan Ölçer (Istanbul), Barbara Plankensteiner (Hamburg), Thomas Thiemeyer (Tübingen), and Abdoulaye Touré (Dakar).
Published by Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
The natural scientist Alexander von Humboldt collected countless flower seeds, which he carefully dried and studied, on his expeditions. Now carry them back into the world and make your garden or town a little more colourful. Just scatter the flower seeds wherever you wish. With plenty of water and some sunshine, it won’t take long until some beautiful wild flowers bloom.
The 15 seed balls are packaged in a decorative, sustainable cardboard box designed by the Salapanga creative agency with Berlin schoolchildren for a cultural project aimed at encouraging creative involvement with current research.
This premium table lamp, designed according to historical models, is a very special home accessory. An eyecatcher in every room, this exclusive design is based on the lights that once hung in the Palace of the Republic.
Known in those days colloquially as “Erich's lamp shop”, the Palace of the Republic was built between 1973 and 1976 under Erich Honecker’s leadership. Until 1990, it was both the seat of the GDR parliament and a popular leisure and cultural centre. The generous lamp installations used to ensure that the foyer and staircase glowed brightly day and night. Many people who visited the Palace of the Republic still remember the impression that the lights made on them.
The table lamp with 12 globes was produced in a very limited edition and is exclusively available here.
Give your notes, thoughts, sketches and anything you like room to develop in this trendy notebook, which depicts a multi-colored, graphic representation of the Palace of the Republic. It is, therefore, not only a souvenir from the city of Berlin, but also a reminder of the site’s eventful history where the Humboldt Forum stands today.
The seat of the former GDR parliament was also a popular venue for cultural events, famous far beyond the borders of Berlin. After the Berlin Palace was demolished in 1950, it was replaced with the Palace of the Republic. Built between 1973 and 1976, many people still have fond memories today of this architecturally interesting building with its diverse tourism and leisure facilities.
This hardcover book contains 80 pure white pages (40 double pages) and is held closed by a white elastic band.
This glass Christmas bauble with a bicoloured print is a special souvenir as well as an original gift for yourself and your loved ones.
Gold-coloured details on a red background create a diamond pattern which is complemented by rosettes with flower-shaped acanthus leaves. The Humboldt Forum’s reconstructed baroque façade is adorned with countless such rosettes, one of the most popular objects donated for the building’s reconstruction. Like many other decorative elements, they were made at the Spandau Schlossbauhütte.
Combine the Christmas bauble with the matching wind light or mix the different colours together.
This glass Christmas bauble with a bicoloured print is a special souvenir as well as an original gift for yourself and your loved ones.
Gold-coloured details on a blue background create a diamond pattern which is complemented by rosettes with flower-shaped acanthus leaves. The Humboldt Forum’s reconstructed baroque façade is adorned with countless such rosettes, one of the most popular objects donated for the building’s reconstruction. Like many other decorative elements, they were made at the Spandau Schlossbauhütte.
Combine the Christmas bauble with the matching wind light or mix the different colours together.
A Berlin original: Mampe, the manufacturer of spirits, has bottled its “Berlin Dry Gin” in an elegant, exclusive glass bottle especially for the Humboldt Forum and adorned it with a seal. With its blend of mild, spicy, and fresh flavours—combined with juniper and a spicy citrus note—this gin can be enjoyed on the rocks or in a cocktail.
Mampe is Berlin’s oldest brand of spirits. It produces various premium quality liqueurs and schnapps on the site of a former brewery in the heart of Kreuzberg's Bergmannkiez neighbourhood. For its ingredients and production, the cult brand relies on the highest quality and local craftsmanship.
The glass bottle’s white diamond-shaped label, inspired by the Humboldt Forum’s logo, makes this gin a unique gift for yourself and your loved ones.
0.5 l
40% vol
delivered in a black box with black-and-white labelling
Ivory fascinates. As long as 40,000 years ago people carved mammoth tusks into artful figures and musical instruments, and it remains popular as a material to this day.
Ivory polarises. Severed elefant tusks represent both injustice and violence. The exploitation of man and nature, the imminent extinction of the elephant, as well as poaching and organised crime are all phenomena which we associate with the use of ivory today. The publication approaches the subject critically and poses questions about our responsibility in our dealings with both animal and material.
Published by Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
This glass Christmas bauble with a bicoloured print is a special souvenir as well as an original gift for yourself and your loved ones.
Matt gold details on a shiny background create a diamond pattern which is complemented by rosettes with flower-shaped acanthus leaves. The Humboldt Forum’s reconstructed baroque façade is adorned with countless such rosettes, one of the most popular objects donated for the building’s reconstruction. Like many other decorative elements, they were made at the Spandau Schlossbauhütte.
Combine the Christmas bauble with the matching wind light or mix the different colours together.
Addressing colonial history and (post)colonial continuities is a major challenge for the Humboldt Forum, and will decisively shape the activities of this cultural institution. This volume features essays and conversations of prominent museum experts from around the world who have supported and advised the Humboldt Forum in its development. Through their statements, they take part in international discussions such as the intense debate about provenance and restitution of ethnological collections. Includes contributions from George Okello Abungu (Nairobi), Kwame Anthony Appiah (New York), Philipp Blom (Vienna), Hartmut Dorgerloh (Berlin), Rita Eder (Mexico City), Hu Wei (Shanghai), Jyotindra Jain (New Delhi), Lars-Christian Koch (Berlin), Lee Chor Lin (Singapore), Neil MacGregor (London), Natalia Majluf (Lima), Wayne Modest (Amsterdam), Nazan Ölçer (Istanbul), Barbara Plankensteiner (Hamburg), Thomas Thiemeyer (Tübingen), and Abdoulaye Touré (Dakar).
Published by Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss
This elegant glass wind light with bicoloured print and mirrored inner surface will fill your room with atmosphere. Its bulbous shape emanates a subtle, shimmering light.
Matt gold details on a shiny background create a diamond pattern which is complemented by rosettes with flower-shaped acanthus leaves. The Humboldt Forum’s reconstructed baroque façade is adorned with countless such rosettes, one of the most popular objects donated for the building’s reconstruction. Like many other decorative elements, they were made at the Spandau Schlossbauhütte.
An eye-catcher even when unlit, the wind light can be used in indoor and outdoor areas.
This unisex dark blue T-shirt features a high-quality gold print of the Berlin Palace’s historic façade on the chest.
The Royal Palace in the heart of Berlin was severely damaged during World War II and, ordered by the GDR government, later demolished. Helped by countless donations, the Förderverein Berliner Schloss e.V. spent many years enabling both the planning and an exact reconstruction of the historic palace’s façades.
The exclusively designed classic souvenir is made of organic cotton, is vegan and fair-traded.
100% organic cotton
certificates: G.O.T.S. certified, Fair Wear Foundation, PETA Approved Vegan, STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®
Glass flower, the Palace Theatre or the countless lamps: There was always plenty to discover in “Erich's Lamp Shop”, as the Palace of the Republic was called colloquially.
This mulit-coloured, self-adhesive paper tape with motives from this cultural centre will make every gift even more special. Easy to tear, it is also perfectly suitable for labelling, arts and crafts and decorating, for example, picture frames, lampshades or furniture.
The Palace of the Republic was famous far beyond Berlin’s city limits. After the Berlin Palace was demolished in 1950, it was replaced with the Palace of the Republic. Built between 1973 and 1976, many people still have fond memories today of this architecturally interesting building with its diverse tourism and leisure facilities. The Salapanga creative agency in Berlin took inspiration for this exclusive design from the graphic icons in and on the Palace of the Republic.
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