Search

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] I. Staatliche Museen Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Collection of Antiquities (CT) Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Early History (CT) The origin of the Berlin Collection of Antiquities goes back to the 16th cent. It was probably the elector Joachim II of Brandenburg who laid the foundations of the holdings of the Curiosity Cabinet in the Schloss in Berlin, during his reign (1535-1571) and also had antiquities purchased. This first stock was almost completely …

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Introduction (CT) The name, Museumslandschaft Hessen Kassel, has been in use only since 2006.  Prior to that from 1992 to 2006 the designation was Staatliche Museen Kassel and from 1924 to 1992 the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Kassel. Throughout these periods, the Kassel collection played and continues to play an important role among German collections of antiquities, even though it cannot be compared in size with Berlin I. Staatliche Museen Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Collection of Antiqui…

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Historical Background of the Antikensaal (CT) The Mannheim Antikensaal (MA) ['Gallery of Antiquities'] was founded in 1769 by Prince Elector Carl Theodor (ruled 1724-1799). Decorated with casts of ancient works of art, this gallery and its furnishings were directly connected with the Palatine ruler's further attempts to develop his residence city into a centre of scholarly and artistic activities. Founded in 1763, the Academy of Sciences was a testimony to t…

[English version] The sculpture museum, organisationally linked with the Städelsches Kunstinstitut, which had been in existence since 1817, was opened in 1909 as part of the Städtische Galerie. The exhibition spaces comprise a historic villa, bequeathed to the city by the manufacturer Heinrich von Liebieg, and two gallery wings that flank a central entrance pavilion. One of those wings was not completed until after 1985, even though it had been planned since the foundation phase of the museum. From the time of its inception the collection has included examples of sculptur…

Clemens, Lukas [German version] I. Post Antiquity (CT) Clemens, Lukas [German version] A. History (CT) After the loss of its function as a (Roman) Imperial residence and the removal of the praetorian prefecture to Arles, Trier (T.) was under permanent military threat. It has been established that the city was taken four times by Frankish (and Burgundian) forces, and retaken each time, all in the first half of the 5th cent. alone. The city also seems to have been affected by the Hunnish expedition into Gaul in …

Klein, Michael J. [German version] I. History of Excavations (CT) Klein, Michael J. [German version] A. Research since the Period of Humanism (CT) The architectural surface monuments and many extant inscriptions from the Roman period have stimulated intensive research in the history of Roman Mainz (M.) ( Mogontiacum) since the Humanist period. The so-called Drusus Stone ( Drususstein or Eichelstein), a monumental cenotaph of the elder Drusus [2], has attracted particular attention. Also the pillars of the Roman aqueduct [20. 63] have spurred a number of…

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Introduction (CT) Although the Basle Antikenmuseum was founded only a few decades ago, making it one of the youngest of its kind in Europe, it houses an archaeological collection of great significance. Various genres of visual art are represented by excellent examples both in terms of their significance for cultural history as well as quality. The museum was founded - and continues to be supported - through a joint effort of municipal and private sponsor…

Gechter, Marianne (Cologne) [German version] I. Post -Antiquity Era (CT) Gechter, Marianne (Cologne) [German version] A. History (CT) Roman rule in Cologne (C.) ended in the middle of the 5th cent. In any case, in 459 C. was in the hands of the Franks. Written sources prove that the transition took place without a great deal of destruction (Amm.15,8; 16,2-3; Salv.gub.6,39; Epistolae 1,5-6). Archaeological evidence, for example, indicates continuous use of the burial ground of St. Severin by the Franks and the Rom…

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Introduction (CT) Founded on the initiative of the Saxon court and thus originally an expression of the absolutist desire for representation, the Dresden Kunstsammlungen in general and the Antikensammlung in particular played a leading role in the establishment of civic museums in Germany. Even though the plans led to a suitable presentation only toward the end of the 18th cent. and – with regard to the actual building – were only realized with limited aspirations, earlier Dresde…

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Introduction (CT) Compared to other German collections, the history of the antiquities museums in Munich is unique in more ways than one: the 16th cent. Antiquarium in the Residenz led the way in terms of princely representation. However, Munich did not then go on to compete with the collecting activities through which the acquisition of antiquities was intensified elsewhere in the Age of Absolutism and during the Enlightenment. On the contrary, the deci…

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Introduction (CT) With the exception of its earlier collection of casts, the Antikensammlung (Collection of Antiquities) in Karlsruhe was an institution of the 19th cent. It did not have its origin in a collection previously owned by a local ruler. Its initial position is reflected in its holdings insofar as it lacks 'representative' galleries of portrait busts or 'decorative' statues. On the other hand, this collection was connected from its very beginn…

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. History (CT) The Antiquities Collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum (KM) only became an independent department in 1900. Prior to that, all ancient exhibits - irrespective of the genre of individual objects - had been part of the Imperial Habsburg Coin and Antiquities Cabinet. The latter, created in the 18th cent. as a courtly collection through the consolidation of hitherto scattered objects, initially continued to exist as a separate collection with…

Kreikenbom, Detlev (Mainz RWG) [German version] A. Introduction (CT) The two Bonn museums that house examples of ancient art developed from common historical circumstances. They did not arise from older court collections, but owe their existence indirectly to the Berlin government, after the Rhineland became annexed to the Prussian state in 1814. The preconditions and bases of the museums' foundation may be considered, on the one hand, as positive effects of Prussia's ‘bourgeois ’reforms after the Wars o…