Neues Museum, Berlin, Germany - SpottingHistory.com

The Neues Museum ('New Museum') was built between 1843 and 1855 according to plans by Friedrich August Stüler, a student of Karl Friedrich Schinkel. The museum was closed at the beginning of World War II in 1939, and was heavily damaged during the bombing of Berlin. The rebuilding was overseen by the English architect David Chipperfield.

Exhibits include the Egyptian and Prehistory and Early History collections, as it did before the war. The artifacts it houses include the iconic bust of the Egyptian queen Nefertiti.

Both as a part of the Museum Island complex, and as an individual building, the museum testifies to the neoclassical architecture of museums in the 19th century. With its new industrialized building procedures and its use of iron construction, the museum plays an important role in the history of technology. Since the classical and ornate interiors of the Glyptothek and of the Alte Pinakothek in Munich were destroyed in World War II, the partly destroyed interior of the Neues Museum ranks among the last remaining examples of interior museum layout of this period in Germany.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Rebecca Gausnell (2 years ago)
Very nice museum. Very interesting design. But very big. I still knew the Egyptian museum wanted to show it to my daughter. Now we would have to go there. But you really have to plan a lot of time. But it is definitely worth it!

Otto Bedo (2 years ago)
wonderful place with a thought out setup. if interested in natural history, this is a place for you then :) I’d suggest going up to the 3rd floor and starting from there all the way to the basement, this is the most fluid way in my opinion to enjoy what the museum offers!

Ian Allen (2 years ago)
Fascinating museum—not so much because of the artifacts housed there but rather because of the design of the museum itself. The redesign by David Chipperfield is exceptional and a wonder to behold—each room is thoughtfully imagined. While this museum will definitely interest those looking for ancient Egyptian items, it will also be of interest to students and admirers of architecture.

Vlada Martikova (2 years ago)
Very nice museum and decorations in the room. It is quite big, so if you want to hear(they give you headphones for free at the entrance) or read about everything, you will probably need more than 2 hours. I rate it 4 stars because they close 15 min before it is indicated so we couldn't see the last floor, which we planned to leave for the end for a quick glance, and it was disappointing. Also, it is prohibited to take pictures of the bust of Nefertiti. Anyhow, especially if you are into Egyptian mythology, it is definitely a worth visiting museum.

Christian Domini (2 years ago)
From what I gather this museum is more about the museum itself and some old antiques they still have. You do have the Nefertiti bust and the Golden hat but either than that it explains how most of the museum artifacts and the museum itself has been lost and renovate through the years. I bet the museum was amazing 100 years ago now is okay. I did spend almost 4 hours in it though

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Trinity Sergius Lavra

The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius is a world famous spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church and a popular site of pilgrimage and tourism. It is the most important working Russian monastery and a residence of the Patriarch. This religious and military complex represents an epitome of the growth of Russian architecture and contains some of that architecture’s finest expressions. It exerted a profound influence on architecture in Russia and other parts of Eastern Europe.

The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, was founded in 1337 by the monk Sergius of Radonezh. Sergius achieved great prestige as the spiritual adviser of Dmitri Donskoi, Great Prince of Moscow, who received his blessing to the battle of Kulikov of 1380. The monastery started as a little wooden church on Makovets Hill, and then developed and grew stronger through the ages.

Over the centuries a unique ensemble of more than 50 buildings and constructions of different dates were established. The whole complex was erected according to the architectural concept of the main church, the Trinity Cathedral (1422), where the relics of St. Sergius may be seen.

In 1476 Pskovian masters built a brick belfry east of the cathedral dedicated to the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles. The church combines unique features of early Muscovite and Pskovian architecture. A remarkable feature of this church is a bell tower under its dome without internal interconnection between the belfry and the cathedral itself.

The Cathedral of the Assumption, echoing the Cathedral of the Assumption in the Moscow Kremlin, was erected between 1559 and 1585. The frescoes of the Assumption Cathedral were painted in 1684. At the north-western corner of the Cathedral, on the site of the western porch, in 1780 a vault containing burials of Tsar Boris Godunov and his family was built.

In the 16th century the monastery was surrounded by 6 meters high and 3,5 meters thick defensive walls, which proved their worth during the 16-month siege by Polish-Lithuanian invaders during the Time of Trouble. They were later strengthened and expanded.

After the Upheaval of the 17th century a large-scale building programme was launched. At this time new buildings were erected in the north-western part of the monastery, including infirmaries topped with a tented church dedicated to Saints Zosima and Sawatiy of Solovki (1635-1637). Few such churches are still preserved, so this tented church with a unique tiled roof is an important contribution to the Lavra.

In the late 17th century a number of new buildings in Naryshkin (Moscow) Baroque style were added to the monastery.

Following a devastating fire in 1746, when most of the wooden buildings and structures were destroyed, a major reconstruction campaign was launched, during which the appearance of many of the buildings was changed to a more monumental style. At this time one of the tallest Russian belfries (88 meters high) was built.

In the late 18th century, when many church lands were secularized, the chaotic planning of the settlements and suburbs around the monastery was replaced by a regular layout of the streets and quarters. The town of Sergiev Posad was surrounded by traditional ramparts and walls. In the vicinity of the monastery a number of buildings belonging to it were erected: a stable yard, hotels, a hospice, a poorhouse, as well as guest and merchant houses. Major highways leading to the monastery were straightened and marked by establishing entry squares, the overall urban development being oriented towards the centrepiece - the Ensemble of the Trinity Sergius Lavra.

In 1993, the Trinity Lavra was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

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