Detail page - Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz

Berlin. In Berlin-Friedrichshagen, under the direction of the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR) and on behalf of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation (SPK), a multifunctional depot building is being built for the National Museums in Berlin (SMB), which is of the highest technical standard in terms of storage and air conditioning technology. The compact new building will realise the goal of a central location where the museums' collections will be brought together in depots with adjoining workshops in one building. Today, the topping-out crown was ceremoniously raised over the shell of the first construction phase.

In Berlin-Friedrichshagen, a new central depot of the National Museums in Berlin is being built for the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation. Today, the President of the BBR, Petra Wesseler, the President of the SPK, Hermann Parzinger, and Albert Urig from AV1 Architekten celebrated the topping-out ceremony for the first construction phase together with construction workers and invited guests.

In future, the central depot will bring together depots and workshops spread across the city and establish a long-term archive for digital objects. AV1 Architekten from Kaiserslautern designed the building, which will be constructed in two phases. The first construction phase began in 2019. This construction phase has around 13,500 square metres of usable space. The second, significantly larger construction phase is to be realised at a later date.

Once both construction phases have been completed, the overall building will consist of six structures that are connected to each other by an inner, ring-shaped, three-metre-wide development (main corridor). Inside, there are several depots measuring up to 1,000 square metres and equipped with modern storage and air-conditioning technology. Closely networked units will be created, which will enable the centralisation of work and storage facilities through shared use. Smaller offices are allocated to the depots and workshops.

The first construction phase comprises two buildings which will house the collections of the Neue Nationalgalerie, the Alte Nationalgalerie, the Kunstgewerbemuseum, the Hamburger Bahnhof - Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart, the Vorderasiatisches Museum, the Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung, the Antikensammlung and the collection of the Museum für Islamische Kunst. With the completion of both construction phases, the collection items from other collections of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin will be housed in depots and restored and cared for in the on-site material-related workshops. The collections will be photographed and digitally recorded in the photo studio and in the so-called digitisation section. A digital long-term archive for all of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation's institutions will also be installed in the basement.

Work in 2023/2024 will focus on the interior fit-out and the technical building services. The outdoor facilities will then be prepared. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2024. This will be followed by commissioning, handover to the user and initial furnishing.

The entire site was originally used by the GDR's Office for Standardisation, Metrology and Goods Testing. From the 1950s to the 1980s, a large number of laboratory, test, administration and storage buildings were constructed there. The northern half of the site was transferred to the SPK for use in 2004. The storage magazine for the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, the Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut and the bpk Bildagentur für Kunst, Kultur und Geschichte was put into operation on this part of the site in 2014.

Further information at www.bbr.bund.de/presse and www.bbr.bund.de/smb-depots-und-werkstaetten-ba-1