Ribbeck House

The Ribbeck House at Breite Straße 35 in Berlin is considered the oldest surviving residential building in the Prussian royal city and the only surviving structure from Berlin's late Renaissance. Originally built in 1624 for the electoral chamber councilor Hans Georg von Ribbeck, it stands directly next to the Old Royal Stables (Alter Marstall). Its architecture is defined above all by the richly decorated round-arched portal, with ornamentation typical of the Renaissance and the alliance coats of arms of the builders' families. Although the facade was altered by later renovations, including the addition of a third story in 1804, the four scrolled gables remain as an architectural rarity. Inside, you can see a restored groin vault in the cellar. The building has had a varied history of use: it once hosted Berlin's first theater and opera performances, served for a long time as the seat of high-ranking government offices, and was the setting for cultural and social activities in the East German era. Since 2011, the landmark building has housed the Berlin Senate Library (Senatsbibliothek Berlin), which operates as part of the Central and Regional Library Foundation (Stiftung Zentral- und Landesbibliothek).