Bode-Museum
The Bode-Museum opened in 1904 as Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum. The museum is located on the Museum Island in the historic centre of Berlin. The building is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1956 it was renamed the Bode-Museum by the government of the GDR. The initiative for this art museum came from Wilhelm von Bode (1845-1929). He was an important art historian, museum specialist and from 1905 director general of the Berlin museums. He is regarded as a co-founder of the modern museum system. With tireless commitment, he acquired numerous art treasures around 1900, founded new collection areas and developed new forms of museum presentation. The Berlin State Museums owe their place among the great collections of world importance largely to him.
The Bode-Museum houses the Collection of Sculptures, the Museum of Byzantine Art, about 100 works of the Gemäldegalerie and the Münzkabinett (coin cabinet). In impressive neo-baroque architecture, the museum presents treasures from over 15 centuries. Around 1.700 sculptures are shown on an exhibition area of almost 6.200 m2, which occupies the majority of the approximative 70 existent rooms. The coin cabinet, housed in six rooms, is one of the largest numismatic collections in the world. In addition to coins, medals are also among the most imposant objects in the coin cabinet.
The sculptures collection is one of the largest and oldest in the world and offers a comprehensive overview of Europea art history from Romanticism to early Classicism. In addition to works of late antiquity, the collection primarily includes German, French, Dutch, Italian and Spanish sculptures. The focus of the collection are the works of the German Gothic and Renaissance as well as the Italian early Renaissance. Highlights include the relief of the Pazzi Madonna (circa 1420) by Donatello, Satyr with Panther (1615) by Bernini and Dancing Girl with Cymbals (1812) by Antonio Canova.
The Byzantine Museum has four rooms with works of art from the 3rd to the 19th centuries. The best-know work of art in this collection is the San Michele Apse Mosaic, depicting Christ standing between the winged Archangels Michael and Gabriel. A very special object ist the Ball Game found at the Hippodrome in Constantinople in 1834. Till today, it is the only known example of an antique slot machine that could be used to play horse races and place bets. One of the most enigmatic works of art is the Relief depicting the liberation of a city, propably representing a real historical event that has not yet been interpreted.
The museum was closed from 1997 to 2006 in order to enable the entire museum building to be restored in accordance with the requirement of the monument. This general overhaul did cost 156 Million Euros. In 2019, the museum recorded around 260.000 visitors.