detective work in Rummelsburg

Last Saturday I was wandering around Rummelsburg, a locality in the borough of Lichtenberg, and I came across some intriguing notes covering the side of an old building. The area has many former factories which have been restored or converted to housing, artist studios and even a (great) club. This building was empty though and I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the historic detective work which was underway. 

I sent along the photos to Jamie, our resident archaeologist, and this is what he had to say.

It seems like an investigation as prelude to the restoration of the building. It's protected as a Denkmal, which means when it is restored it needs to maintain its historical appearance. The types of mortar and paint used in the restoration are required to conform to the original mortar and paint. This looks like an investigation to establish which paint and mortar are the earliest ones used. They have exposed different paint layers that have built up over time in order to see which one was the first. Alternatively they might be aiming to restore the structure to the appearance it had at a particular point in time (eg 1920s).   

 

Once restored, it might look like a similar building just down the road: http://www.perlon-labor.de/en/

From this photo I was able to do some research about the former factory, and it seems it was producing chemicals used in the dying of fabrics. 

https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/73MP6KTKZHM7RMYZBRY2T4V6LCOCKW75

Field trip to the Humboldt Forum

Insider guides got a sneak preview into the bowels of Berlin's 'new city palace (Stadtschloss) this week. Our indomitable guide, Christian, was at pains to explain that this is indeed no new palace, but instead 'The Humbolt Forum'. Unwilling to rebuild an icon of the monarchy, the German state would pay only for something else, to use for matters of state and visiting dignitaries/delegations. The Prussian trappings would have to be funded by the City of Berlin and private donations.
This has led to the project being a sum of compromises between government functionality and the visions of those harking of days gone by. Still, it is getting done, not like our new airport. Oddly enough the results to date are quite striking. The traditional and the modern blend nicely. There are huge rooms for receptions, even a small concert hall, and enough space for Dahlem's fantastic Ethnological museum to move there in 2019. There will of course also be some shops.
The views from the Forum over the historical centre are outstanding. One thinks that despite some Berliners reservations about this new building it might just indeed become a roaring success.