Museumsinsel "Museum Island" - Berlin, Germany

Museumsinsel is located between the Spree River and the Kupfergraben.  The island is less than a square kilometer in size.  The first of the five museums to be completed was the Altes Museum in 1830.  It was not until 1841 that Friedrich August Stuler came up with the idea to turn the island into a cultural center.  The other four museums were then built throughout the next 90 or so years until the final museum, the Pergamon, was finished in 1930.  During World War II nearly 70% of the buildings on Museum Island were destroyed, and since then all have been reconstructed.

Museumsinsel

The artifacts held within these five museums represent a span of over 6,000 years of human history.  In 1999, Museumsinsel was awarded UNESCO World Heritage Status.  The Island was defined by UNESCO as "an outstanding example of the Enlightenment vision of making art publicly accessible, given material form in a central urban setting".

Alte Nationalgalerie

Each of the museums houses a unique collection of their own.  The Alte Nationalgalerie, or the Old National Gallery, holds many 19th century works of art.  Most of these works are by well-known German artists; however, there are also a decent amount of French Impressionist pieces.  The Altes Museum, or the Old Museum, was originally built to hold treasures of the royal family.  Today, the museum is home to a wide variety of Greek and Roman artifacts.  The Altes Museum was reconstructed by architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel to resemble a Greek Corinthian Temple.  The Bode Museum holds mainly sculptures and Byzantine art and paintings ranging from the Middle ages to the 19th century.  The Neues Museum Contains a large collection or prehistoric, early history, and Egyptian works of art.  It is mostly known for its Queen Nefertiti artifacts. Finally, the Pergamon Museum contains Greek and Babylonian antiques, some of which include the Pergamon Altar that it is named after and the Ishtar Gate of Babylon.

Ishtar Gate of Babylon

Other buildings on the island include the Dom, which is Berlin's Protestant Cathedral, and the Marstall, which is used today as a library and archive.  In 2007, a reconstruction project of the Stadtschloss was approved.  The original Stadtschloss was a palace, and had been demolished twice - once in 1950 and then again in 1976.  The new palace will be titled, "Humboldtforum".

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There are also plans for more additions to the island, which are expected to be finished by 2015.  Some of these include: a promenade linking the buildings and a central entrance building with exhibition areas, cafes, and shops.

Sources:

"10 must see sights in Berlin." Blog | noambit. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2013. .

"Berlin Museum Island | Tourism in Germany – travel, breaks, holidays." Tourism in Germany – travel, breaks, holidays. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2013. .

Dunford, Lisa. Central Europe. 9th ed. Footscray, Vic.: Lonely Planet, 2011. Print.

"MUSEUM BERLIN | BABYLON. MYTHOS UND WAHRHEIT IM PERGAMONMUSEUM." Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2013. .

"Museum Island, Berlin." A View On Cities. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2013. .

"Museumsinsel - Berlin.de." Berlin - Offizielles Stadtportal der Hauptstadt Deutschlands - Berlin.de. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2013. .