Museo de Pergamo

The Pergamon Museum in Berlin's Mitte district is a central part of Museum Island, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The monumental building was commissioned by Kaiser Wilhelm II and constructed between 1910 and 1930 in a simplified neoclassical style. Alfred Messel originally designed the building; after his death, Ludwig Hoffmann took over its execution. The architecture takes the form of a deep, three-winged complex that opens to the southwest toward the Spree River. The tall, windowless central building closes off a long forecourt, while the side wings are characterized by rows of colossal Doric pilasters and engaged columns. The facade is made of various natural stones such as shell limestone, granodiorite, and granite porphyry, while the less prominent sides are finished with a stone-imitating plaster.

Historically, the present building traces back to an earlier structure built between 1897 and 1899, which opened in 1901. Because the foundations of that first building showed problems and the monumental objects found in excavations in Babylon, Uruk, Assur, and Egypt could not be displayed adequately, it was decided to build a new museum on the same site. It was meant to provide space for ancient architecture, post-antique German art, and Near Eastern and Islamic art. Construction was seriously delayed by World War I, the Revolution of 1918, and the inflation of the 1920s, so the museum did not open until 1930. Some planned elements, such as a portico in the courtyard and a fourth wing for the Egyptian Museum, were never completed.

During the air raids of World War II, the museum was badly damaged. Many exhibits were moved to storage or walled up, while the Red Army carried off a large part of the collections to Moscow and Leningrad in 1945. After the Soviet Union returned part of the collections in the late 1950s, the Pergamon Altar could be reassembled largely in its original presentation. Today the museum houses the Collection of Classical Antiquities, the Museum of the Ancient Near East, and the Museum of Islamic Art. Its best-known exhibits include the Pergamon Altar, the Market Gate of Miletus, the Ishtar Gate with the Processional Way from Babylon, and the Mshatta Facade.

Since 2013, the Pergamon Museum has been undergoing extensive renovation as part of the Museum Island Master Plan. The goal is to connect the building to the island's other museums via an Archaeological Promenade and to create a new main circuit. The Cologne architect Oswald Mathias Ungers won the competition for the renovation work in 2000. Because of the complex restoration work, the museum has been completely closed since October 2023. A partial reopening, including the north wing and the Pergamon Hall, is planned for 2027, while the south section of the building is not expected to fully reopen until 2037. The cost of the renovation has risen considerably over the years.

Despite its current closure, the Pergamon Museum is one of Berlin's most important cultural institutions. In 2019, shortly before it closed completely, it recorded around 804,000 visitors, making it one of the most visited museums in the city. The collection mainly displays works of Greek and Roman architecture as well as monumental finds from the Near East. The combination of architectural splendor and historical depth makes it an important destination for art and history lovers who want to experience ancient cultures in their original monumental form.