English Abstracts

Hartmut Dorgerloh: Museum palaces as a venue of cultural tradition, in: zeitenblicke 7 (2008), Nr. 1.

At the beginning of the 21st century it is necessary to take a more critical look at the term “museum palace”. This term was first used in the 1920s for the residences taken on by the Prussian Palace Administration Department from the heritage of the abdicated Hohenzollern monarchy. Today the concept of the homogeneously traditional ‘gesamtkunstwerk’, which even then only held good with reservations, should be viewed with more distance. The enormous political upheavals of the 20th century owing to two world wars, the occupation and division of Germany, an anti-tradition mindset, the change of use and dereliction caused such enormous losses that the museum palaces administrated now by the Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation Berlin-Brandenburg have to be seen in a nuanced light and categorised anew: from the rare case of a palace surviving almost completely with its fixtures and furnishings to the restored buildings with the room sequences having to be reconstructed and the furniture re-set up.

Harald Berndt: Cecilienhof Palace – merely a memorial? Comments on the concept of dealing with the last Hohenzollern palace, in: zeitenblicke 7 (2008), Nr. 1.

The nationalisation of the Prussian palaces in Berlin and Potsdam after the end of the First World War and the establishment of the Prussian Palace Administration Department in 1927 entailed an almost exclusively museum-like presentation, which – with interruptions due to the Second World War – has been continued until the present day. The case of Cecilienhof Palace was, however, different. Although the palace was assigned to the Palace Administration, after 1918 it remained the family residence of the last Crown Prince of the German Empire and Prussia and was the venue for the Potsdam Conference in 1945. Even after the memorial was opened in 1952 the integration of the last Hohenzollern palace into the context of the other royal and imperial residences proved to be difficult. It was not until after the reunification process in 1990 that, in addition to the Potsdam Agreement, also architectural and art historical aspects emerged. The aim of this article is to consider the varying use history and the conceptual change processes resulting from this in their temporal and thematic complexity, and to trace just what impact social and political decisions have on museum-related objectives. The debate on whether it be a palace or a memorial ended with neither a clear pro nor a clear contra, but that many facets of the palace development have to be taken into consideration and that a misappropriation can at the same time also be a perhaps involuntary “saving grace” for a palace museum.

Bettina Giersberg: The New Palace 1933. Reich Leadership School (Reichsführerschule) and representative palace, in: zeitenblicke 7 (2008), Nr. 1.

Germany under the national socialists has been a subject of historical research for some years now and been presented in extensive collections of source material and monographs. However, in this context one subject matter has hardly been addressed: the history of museum palaces as cultural institutions during the national socialist regime. This article outlines the use history of the Potsdam Royal New Palace and the other palaces in the Sanssouci Park in 1933, the first year of the national socialist regime. New image sources illustrate the establishment of the Leadership School of the Reich Labour Service (Reichsarbeitsdienst) on the New Palace premises and how the national socialist executive changed the use of the museum palace.

Detlef Fuchs: Schönhausen – a latecomer for the Prussian Palace Administration. Ambivalent treatment of the Prussian architectural treasure between 1918 and 2005, in: zeitenblicke 7 (2008), Nr. 1.

This article outlines the essential aspects of the history of use of Schönhausen Palace in the 20th century, also including Bellevue Palace in the comparison. The new functional course of the palace is analysed on the basis of the inaugural speech from 1936. The consequences for constructional changes resulting from this are specified. The use of the Palace as the official seat of the President of the GDR, as well as its function as official guest house meant that the former summer residence of Queen Elisabeth Christine received an essential historical level of meaning which has been reflected in the heritage and museum concept for the extensive restoration works which began in 2006.

Alfred P. Hagemann: A Prussian palace for the socialist state of workers and farmers – Schönhausen Palace 1945-1990, in: zeitenblicke 7 (2008), Nr. 1.

The integration of the historically important phase of Schönhausen Palace as the representative state building of the GDR (official seat of the President and the State Council, official guest house) into the exhibition concept of the Palace poses a major challenge to the Prussian Palaces and Gardens Foundation. To be able to convey the diverse changes in the use and organisation of the palace it is of key importance to understand the relations that tie between Prussian history and the use of the Palace by the GDR. With the various layout and furnishing concepts of the Palace and Garden between 1949 and 1990 the East German government’s oscillation between appropriation of history and formulistic representation and between historicism and modern adaptation of the Palace can be observed, representing an exemplary reflection of the entire architectural history of the German Democratic Republic.

Franziska Windt: The Queen and her Palace - Elisabeth Christine in Schönhausen Palace, in: zeitenblicke 7 (2008), Nr. 1.

The era of Queen Elisabeth Christine in Schönhausen Palace is still clearly reflected in many of the palace rooms – despite the often substantial later changes. Only with the current restoration works have the considerable extent and quality of the preserved substance been unsheathed. Where at all possible, this important layer of time should be illustrated and play a key role in the presentation of this subject matter. This means that in a section of the ground floor almost a century later well-known original pieces of furniture still in stock are to be returned to their position, as documented in the 18th century. Where no furniture has been preserved selected exhibits visualise the important aspects of Elisabeth Christine’s life.

Thomas Tapp: Results of the preliminary restoration investigation of Schönhausen Palace and initial stages for the realisation of a restoration and colour concept, in: zeitenblicke 7 (2008), Nr. 1.

This article presents the results of the preliminary examinations for the restoration of Schönhausen Palace, which since the late 17th century has undergone numerous alterations and renovations. As the first initial investigations have shown, special attention shall be paid not only to the façade but also to the colouring, stucco work and paper hangings in the individual rooms.