The German History Muesum in Berlin boasts art and artefacts that tell the chronological story of the country from around 100CE – 1994. As exhaustive and impressive as it all was – it made very little sense.

Incredible artefacts from across the ages are almost well arranged, but the layout of the sprawling museum didn’t help us find direction and the poorly written text descriptions confused more than informed. A real shame, as with tighter curation and better writing, this would without a doubt be one of the most impressive narratives on show in Europe. I totally appreciate the challenge and respect the job they’ve done so far, and I doubt I could have done better job with the amount of content the building contained and the complexities of European history – but still, it was often a chore.

Early pinball machine, that also folded into a billiard table and a game with little canons

Napolean’s hat and sword retrieved from Waterloo

After working our way up to 1918 and piecing together what we could (and of course admiring some wonderful artworks and artefacts) we ate for the second time at the excellent Museum Cafe. As we started the final leg of the museum, we stumbled on a film theatre showing images of the entire museum’s collection with voiceover (and English subtitles). The film gave a much clearer overview of German history than the galleries had, and in within the 15 minute duration a number of facts and chronologies we’d been confused about were resolved. Wish we’d started with the film! (It’s located near the start of the 1918-1994 exhibition).

The next part of the museum, running from the rise of the Nazi party through to the separation and eventual reunification of East and West, was much easier to follow, partly because we were already better educated on the subject matter. The Nazi exhibition in particular was honest and moving – everything was presented as factually as you’d expect with a minimum of sentiment, but with a genuine acknowledgement of the atrocities of the regime. It was a sobering exhibit to take in.

Hitler’s globe, complete with a bullet hole through northern Europe

The East/West divide was well presented, and we eventually made it to one of the last items in the museum – a 1990 video showing thousands of Germans gathered at night at the Reichstag and the Brandenburg Gate to celebrate reunification by candlelight. While much of the early part of the museum relied on artefacts and artworks, seeing actual photos and video captured in the last Century made everything seem more real, less abstract and inevitably more moving. The video was a beautiful and hopeful conclusion to the main exhibition.

East

West

Marthese says Goodbye, Lenin

Without realising it, we’d stayed almost the entire day in the museum! We checked out a few temporary exhibitions as well, one on WWI, the other on propaganda photography of East Germany (both excellent exhibitions) before calling it quits. Definitely an impressive museum, but we were let down by the promise of a coherent history. Perhaps if we’d used the audio guides, but they seemed more item specific.

Tonight we dine and see live music – hopefully! The sun is still shining bright and the streets of Berlin want us back.

Click here for more photos from Berlin Day 4.

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