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The Berlin Wall Goes Global
In Germany treatment of the wall has evolved from an initial euphoric rush to grab souvenirs to a sometimes painful debate on how to preserve its remains.
In Berlin, only a few large sections of the Wall in its original location remain, and around the world, Wall segments have become symbols of the triumph over tyranny. Dismantled, Destroyed, and Commemorated Three hundred GDR border police began the official demolition of the Wall on June 13, 1990, aided by 600 soldiers of the West German Bundeswehr, 13 bulldozers, 55 excavators, 65 cranes, and 175 trucks. Nearly five months later, the inner-city sections of the Wall had been destroyed save for six sections, which were left standing as monuments. Most of the concrete slabs were pulverized and recycled into materials used for street paving. As many as 250 individual slabs of the Wall were auctioned off at prices between 10,000 and 150,000 DM. Today, sections are on display around the world, including in the United States, as symbols of the victory over totalitarianism. As the wall was being dismantled, thousands flocked to Berlin with picks in hand to personally take part in the demolition. Berliners, known for their droll wit, dubbed these tourists who chipped off pieces of the wall as souvenirs, “Mauerspechte” (wall peckers). Their most prized artifacts were the colorful graffiti-covered pieces from the western face of the Wall. However, it is difficult now to authenticate whether these relatively small chunks of concrete are actual pieces of the Wall.
Throughout Berlin, a somewhat inconspicuous line of cobblestone set in the pavement marks the location of the former barrier between East and West. It traverses non-descript streets and passes by globally-recognized monuments, for example, the Brandenburg Gate, which once stood as a solemn monument in the middle of No-Man’s Land. Emotional Debate Over Preservation Ironically, the once-despised barrier has for a number of years been the focus of preservation efforts by both public and private entities, though many people would still like to see its remnants finally eradicated. As time and the elements take their toll on the physical remains of the Wall, a national debate continues on the Wall’s status as a cultural artifact to be protected for future generations. It is a debate that especially stirs the emotions of those for whom the structure was a barrier to freedom and a symbol only of a despised system of totalitarianism.
A suggestion to nominate the Wall as a UNESCO World Heritage Site – a designation which would provide access to international funds for preservation – has been embraced on the one hand and rejected by critics who call the barrier “Unkultur” or a piece of non-culture. While few experts would suggest that Wall remnants should be completely eradicated, some have likened its cultural significance to that of France’s Bastille, whose destruction in 1789 remains a powerful symbol of that country’s democracy. They argue that allotting the Wall UNESCO World Heritage status would change the entire character of the list. At a 1995 conference of the German National Committee for Conservation, Berlin Senator Dr. Volker Hassemer, responsible for urban development and historic preservation, argued eloquently for the conservation of the Wall: “It is our duty to retain proof of this madness to guard against any possibility of its return: We should take the phrase of the ‘incredibility of the Wall’ seriously. Quite soon nobody will believe that such a thing was put into the middle of a metropolis… . We need the remnants of this horrible edifice as enduring witnesses.” Axel Klausmeier and Leo Schmidt of the Department of Architectural Conservation at the Brandenburg University of Technology (BTU) Cottbus recently completed an unprecedented documentation of the remaining sites in an effort to shed light on the Wall’s continuing significance as a piece of Berlin’s history. It is the first study that recognizes not only the parts of the Wall that are protected as historical sites, but also the watchtowers, artifacts, and authentic material remnants of the border, however small. Superbly thorough, it contradicts the widely-held belief that only few traces remain of the Wall while hinting at the cultural loss that the city has already endured. But while their documentation proves that the Wall is still a part of the city’s physical fabric, most visitors to Berlin interested in witnessing the scale of the Wall do so at only three remaining longer sections, which even for their size, fail to give a sense of the sheer magnitude of the former border between East and West. Substantial Berlin Wall Remnants It is difficult for some visitors to Berlin – a city which has been experiencing nothing short of a revival since German unification – to imagine the city divided through its heart by a Wall that has only been absent for a decade and a half. With so many of the physical barriers removed between East and West, mentally reconstructing the former lines drawn by the Wall has become a necessary task for anyone truly interested in understanding the city and its history. Digital Recreations For those of us who might never have the opportunity to track down the remnants of the Wall, there are interactive online maps, which help us to visualize where the Wall once stood and what remains of it today. Link
Berlin Remembers and Commemorates Bernauer Strasse The street known as Bernauerstrasse, once a demarcation line between the district known as Mitte in the Soviet sector and Wedding, in the French sector, became a closed border on August 13, 1961. During the Wall’s first years in existence, East Germans could still jump out of windows from a building that happened to be on the dividing line to take refuge in the West, before this escape route was bordered up. The first of nearly a thousand victims of the Wall was an older man who died while trying to jump to his freedom. Later, the building was demolished. Today, the site is home to the Memorial of the Division, which includes a 230-foot section of the Wall, as well as the Berlin Wall Documentation Center, which was inaugurated in 1999. Berlin Wall Documentation Center The Berlin Wall Documentation Center is just one component of the ensemble of memorial sites at Bernauer Strasse, which also includes the Berlin Wall Memorial and the Chapel of Reconciliation. The Documentation Center is organized and run by the Verein Berliner Mauer and supported by an advisory council that bears responsibility for the project content. In addition to fully documenting the tumultuous history of the Berlin Wall, the Documentation Center provides educational programs for the public. Link
Niederkirchner Strasse
One of the few remaining intact segments of the Wall in the center of Berlin can be found at Niederkirchnerstrasse, a site charged with history. To the west of the Wall are ruins from the former Gestapo headquarters, to the east is the building that housed Goering’s Air Force Ministry. Undestroyed during World War II, this building was also used by the government of the GDR. Today, it is home to the Ministry of Finance. Displayed in what used to be the basement of the former Gestapo building is the “Topography of Terror,” an open air exhibition that documents crimes committed by the Nazis on the very site where the decisions were made to annihilate people from various strata of German social life. Link East Side Gallery
The largest section of the Wall to be preserved can be found at the 1420-yard East Side Gallery in Mühlenstrasse, which also has the distinction of being the world’s largest open-air gallery. Scottish gallery owner Chris McLean conceived the idea, which brought 118 artists from to the city to create art on the clear grey canvas of remaining sections of the Wall. Many of the paintings depict images and themes of mutual understanding and man’s humanity to man. Others, such as the famous painting by Birgit Kinder of an East German Trabant car driving through the Wall, reflect the people’s part in bringing down the barrier. It has been a historic, state-recognized monument since 1991, and efforts to preserve it continue. In 2000, all original artists involved in the project were invited back to the East Side Gallery for an event which marked the first major renovation of the site. Link
The House at Checkpoint Charlie
For Americans, “Checkpoint Charlie” is one of the most notorious spots of the Cold War. A border crossing point, it was located in the American sector on Friedrichstrasse, at the boundary between the eastern district of Mitte and the western district of Kreuzberg. It was reserved for foreigners, diplomats and the military as of August 25, 1961.
The checkpoint was removed on June 22, 1990, and is now on exhibition at the Allied Museum, located in southwest Berlin. But the checkpoint’s former location is now the site of the House at Checkpoint Charlie, a museum devoted to preserving stories of both the successful and unsuccessful attempts made to flee East Berlin. Despite what many see as the “kitchyness” or unsophisticated nature of its somewhat outdated displays, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city because of its intimate portrayals of personal yearning for freedom. Links
The Berlin Wall in the United States Newseum The largest display of the Berlin Wall outside of Germany is located in the United States at the Freedom Forum and Newseum at Freedom Park in Arlington, VA, just outside of Washington, D.C. The exhibit consists of eight 12-foot tall segments of the Berlin Wall that originally stood at the corner of Bethaniendamm and Leuschnerdamm in Berlin’s Kreuzberg district, south of the Brandenburg Gate. Also on display is a 32-foot tall watchtower that originally stood at Stallschreiberstrasse, less than a mile from Checkpoint Charlie. The tower was a gift from the Wall Museum at the House at Checkpoint Charlie and its director, Rainer Hildebrandt, to the Freedom Forum. Freedom Park, which opened on July 4, 1996, celebrates the spirit of freedom and the ongoing struggle to preserve it. In addition to the Wall exhibition, it is home to the Freedom Forum Journalists Memorial, dedicated to journalists who have died trying to report the news, as well as the pioneers of journalism. Links
The Ronald Reagan Memorial Library
In honor of U.S. President Ronald Reagan’s challenge to Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall,” a single segment of the Berlin Wall was presented to the Ronald Reagan Memorial Library on April 12, 1990. The piece is a fine example of the Wall, brightly painted with a butterfly motif on what faced the West side and stark, bare concrete on the side that faced the East. It also stands as a symbolic reminder of the president’s strong anti-communist beliefs and commitment to a unified Germany. Link
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