Journal for immersive art: panorama, literature, theatre, visual art | Issue 4 | English

– SPECIAL EDITION –

‘Pergamonmuseum. The Panorama’ – Interview with the Director of the Collection of Classical Antiquities
‘Art of the Gods – The roots of ancient theatre’
‘Pergamon in ancient Greece – Bergama in Turkey’
‘The Altar – A true literary discovery’
2 Editorial
Dear readers,
Berlin has a new PERGAMON panorama. Look out of
the window on the S-Bahn between Friedrichstrasse
and Hackescher Markt, and you can’t miss it. And
after everything we have seen from him – with this, his
latest panorama, Yadegar Asisi has outdone himself
once again. The size of the image, of course, the new
sharpness of detail, and the latest lighting and sound
technology make it a spectacular, even bombastic visual
experience. The image on the next double page gives
you an impression.
The sensational spectacle known as ‘PERGAMON –
Masterpieces from the ancient metropolis and 360°
panorama by Yadegar Asisi’ is a collaboration between
A work so grand
the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (Berlin State Museums)
and the artist Yadegar Asisi. The Pergamonmuseum is
undergoing renovation works planned for completion in
and magnificent...
2024. Until then, the famous altar will remain hidden by a
giant wooden crate in the midst of the construction work.
But the panoramic image keeps it in the Berlin public
had been returned
eye. And in this edition of ThreeSixO, we’re giving you
a taste of it already. For one thing, visitors can view a
spectacular panoramic image of Pergamon as a key
to the world!
metropolis of ancient Greece. At the same time, the show
exhibits the most beautiful pieces from the treasure trove
of the Berlin Collection of Classical Antiquities, which are
presented in a whole new light. Not only in a technical
sense. It’s truly enlightening, too.
Carl Humann 1880
After all, don’t you sometimes walk through large
museums with antiquities collections and think: ah, a
marble bust, who’s that then? Oh yes, it says on the little
sign. It’s Hercules. And what about this head with its nose
missing? I don’t know. Ah well, I don’t need to know. And
why is the armless Venus in a high-security area? Behind
glass next to it: vases, vases, vases, fragments. Figures
and scenes. Everything lined up next to each other and
on top of each other and everything looks somehow the
same. And then you think to yourself: so where’s the
café?
The people of antiquity were made of stronger stuff. They
believed in an all-encompassing devotion to the divine.
Every human mood, every weather condition, every
event – everything was personified as a deity.
3
And you could talk to them. Whether it was the question
of a good harvest or business success, travel and health
– supposedly, with the right gifts and offerings, some
things could be controlled. The Director of the Collection
of Classical Antiquities, Andreas Scholl, also talks about
this in our interview. That people worked on the basis
they had to give the gods something in order to receive
something in return. It sounds naive at first. But maybe
we should envy the Greeks a little, too. Okay, we now
know more things. For instance, we know where thunder
and lightning come from – for the Greeks, they were the
sons of Uranus, Steropes and Brontes. But do we handle
life’s big questions and the world’s evils any better? Even
if we no longer explain them as the opening of Pandora’s
box?
The Pergamon panorama is a fantastic depiction of
this time. And we are transported there as if by a time
machine. The people are celebrating a festival in honour
of the god Dionysus. As the god of wine and pleasure,
he was also responsible for ecstasy and rapture. And
theatre, too. For four days at the end of winter, this crazy
feast gave people the opportunity to let loose without
being punished. (Today, Dionysus might be the god
of football, carnival, or music festivals.) Intoxication
serving as religious worship. The subsequent hangover
was a matter for Apollo, the god of peace, spring and
temperance. The idea of the Festival of Dionysus as the
origin of theatre as we know it today is something that is
also touched upon in Thomas Irmer’s article. The Berlin
theatre scholar writes about theatre, art and literature
for international specialist publications. As mimesis, as
imitation of nature on stage, theatre was an immersive
art form. People loved it. They followed along emotionally
with the action on stage and took it with them as personal
experience into their everyday lives.
We also present a new book. The Altar is a German
novel by Ralf Nürnberger. It tells the story of the
Pergamonmuseum in Berlin in a whole new way. The
citizens of 19th-century Berlin turned the Pergamon Altar
into one of their most important icons and built it its own
museum. The book tells this story. And before you delve
into this novel or the PERGAMON panorama in Berlin,
I hope you enjoy this issue of ThreeSixO. Happy reading!
Juliane Voigt
 4
5

photo: Tom Schulze ©asisi

6 Pergamonmuseum. Das Panorama 7

The Collection of Classical Antiquities

of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin is among the
world’s most important collections of ancient
Greek and Roman art. Its most important exhibit is the
monumental Pergamon Altar, which is over
2,000 years old. A masterpiece of Hellenistic art,
its expressive sculptural frieze depicts the battle
between the gods and the giants. Since 2004,
Prof Andreas Scholl has been the Director

Pergamonmuseum
of the Berlin Collection of Classical Antiquities.

The panorama
In the panoramic image, the altar plays a prominent,
central role, alongside the sanctuary of Athena and
Interview with the Director of the Collection of Classical Antiquities of the the Greek theatre. As a scholar, to what extent do
you contribute to the physical structure and all the
Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Andreas Scholl trappings of scenery?

AS
Of course, Yadegar Asisi makes the biggest
contribution to the overall image. It’s his work.
But – as in 2011 – we had a massive influence on almost
every detail of the archaeological reconstruction. However,
This is your second PERGAMON exhibition with the for this new edition, there were many points of reference
artist Yadegar Asisi. The first time, back in 2011, the for approaching a critical revision of the panorama. For
interplay between archaeological exhibition and instance, Yadegar Asisi has now cleared the altar’s inner
panoramic image proved to be a perfect combination. courtyard of blooming bushes, as he has now had the time
In your opinion, what makes it such a resounding and opportunity to add the Telephos Frieze. This was not
success? possible the first time around for reasons of timing. The
content of the small frieze, however, is very important, as it
a certain extent. But we delivered everything that occurred
to us. Of course, we know scenes of sacrifice and similar
things from the images on Greek vases. There are
descriptions in ancient literature, there are long inscriptions
that say quite precisely what needs to be sacrificed when,
so you do have sources. But nevertheless, I can’t get
from that a – how can I put it? – photorealistic impression
of how it actually looked back then. But of course, that’s
exactly what the panorama suggests. To the extent that
it involves a great deal of photographic material, using
extras. That’s problematic, of course, but the much worse

AS
What fascinated me from the very beginning was
that the panorama is a medium that is capable
of really bringing the visitor into the citadel of Pergamon.
They’re given the whole picture – in the truest sense of the
phrase – which is something an archaeological exhibition
can never achieve. However, I was really surprised by
the strong emotional impact of the image. An astonishing
number of people were literally moved to tears. We were
also braced for much more criticism from academic circles.
But even the driest colleagues were excited.
With this new edition, to my mind, the appeal of the
panorama has again increased significantly. The image is
now much more monumental – the spatial impact of the
panorama truly depends on its size – and the vast majority
of people have never seen such a vast image before in
their lives. Today, we mostly watch moving pictures on our
smartphones, tablets, films, on TV. Everything whooshes
by. Suddenly you’re exposed to this perfectly still image that
has an impact on you from all sides and whose powerful
presence is also dramatically enhanced by the tremendous
theatrical lighting and accompanying music. In comparison
to the 2011 show, we were able to create the exhibition and
panorama as much more of a cohesive whole. The panorama
is now an integral part of the tour and the exhibition includes
new works by Yadegar Asisi which are linked to the exhibits
in an artistic and informative way.
He uses a wide range of techniques and styles to create
these. It allows him to make a huge drawing of the
monumental female figures in front of the Pergamon altar
look like a reconstruction from the late 19th century. He also
uses the latest technical possibilities for his enlightening
visual depictions, which interpret the works of art in their
own way. For example, a complex light projection simulates
the ancient colour of a marble statue that is now all white
much more attractively than a painted plaster cast. We
now know for sure that almost all ancient stone sculptures
were originally multi-coloured. As well as Asisi’s drawings,
there is an extremely intricately designed digital model that
takes the viewer on a smooth camera journey out of the
Pergamonmuseum and to the Pergamon citadel, clearly
showcasing the location and architecture of the Great Altar.
tells Pergamon’s highly complex and completely fabricated
founding myth, which the kings, as newcomers to ancient
Greece, had experts come up with. They wanted to latch
on to the oldest layers of Greek culture. Their clever
mythographers concocted this completely crazy story and
then carved it into stone for eternity. The only half-preserved
small frieze is now clearly visible in the panorama image in
the courtyard of the Great Altar. Some missing parts are
covered by the rising smoke from the burnt offering. This
makes the overall depiction of the inner courtyard much
more accurate than it was before, and makes it easier
to understand. For other questions, we also received
suggestions from the German Archaeological Institute
in Istanbul. Pergamon’s excavation director, Felix Pirson,
had very specific requests for changes which were then
incorporated into the image, for example concerning the
houses on the hillsides or the natural sanctuaries.
Of course, what is much trickier and more questionable
than the archaeological reconstruction of topography and
architecture is all the living action. All of the scenes in the
image are completely invented. But of course we tell people
that, too. From a historical perspective, it is only possible to
capture exactly how people looked and lived in antiquity to
alternative would be a sterile scene devoid of people. As
an artist, Asisi has fewer reservations in this regard than
we researchers do. Using the contemporary genre figures
from Hellenistic-era sculpture that we put together for him,
he was able to reconstruct many scenes and place them
in the image. Of course, as archaeologists we can often
only supply vague information, such as when it comes
to the colours of ancient sculptures, which are proven to
have been very bright. For example, we don’t know about
the colouring in the full Pergamon Altar frieze. Here, we
could only refer Asisi to sculptures that have kept some
of their colour. He then took the bold step of completely
reconstructing the altar’s north frieze and presenting it in
colour. His vast visual reconstruction of the north frieze
is now on display in the rotunda. It shows the visitor very
clearly how Asisi used his artistic intuition to fill in the gaps,
taking archaeological findings into consideration. Despite
all the evident difficulties, this reproduction is by far the
most convincing that has ever been attempted.
8 Pergamonmuseum. Das Panorama
Your exhibition surrounds the panoramic image and
shows a large number of original works of art from
the Collection of Classical Antiquities, including the
Telephos Frieze, which we have mentioned. There’s
also a group of life-size female figures which most
likely surrounded the Pergamon Altar. Will there be
something new for visitors to see?
AS
We are actually showing all artistically significant
sculptures from Pergamon that made it to Berlin,
apart from the original of the Great Frieze, which had to stay
in the Pergamon Museum. The sculptures on show are
being presented in quite outstanding condition after a long
period of restoration. They certainly haven’t looked this good
since ancient times. The new layout and lighting set-up in
the hall also gives lots of sculptures a completely different
effect from how we know them from the Pergamonmuseum.
For instance, the Telephos Frieze suddenly looks much
bigger, as its ‘Room within a Room Installation’ gives it a
completely different visual frame of reference. Now, instead
of being presented in diffuse daylight, it’s lit by spotlights
that make it look uncannily vivid. There is also a daylight
composition created by Yadegar Asisi, in which the ceiling
of the ‘Telephos box’ and the wall opposite change in the
way they might have in natural sunlight on the citadel. This
is intended to give the viewer an idea of how the sun’s
constantly changing position might have affected the
impact of the relief in the altar courtyard and how the image
of the sculptures changed from minute to minute.
We’ve also selected objects that mutually shed light on
each other and are representative of our collection. The
sculptures we show were almost never purely for decoration.
In many cases, they had other functions and made a
specific, substantive statement. The group of large female
figures, who now welcome all who enter, were already big
and expensive works of art back in ancient times. At the
same time, however, they are most likely statues in honour
of priestesses, citizens or personifications of abstract
concepts. They were always intended as valuable offerings
to the gods. As agalmata, as brilliant works, they were
intended to delight the gods, but at the same time, they
were also a plea for their favour. This principle, whereby I
give something to a deity and, in a relatively mechanical
understanding, expect to receive something in return, is a
key cornerstone of ancient Greek religious ideas, and these
things are also addressed. Asisi returned these particularly
lovely sculptures to their original context in a large painting,
assisting with the visitor’s reading. Of course, these figures
also appear in the panorama image and the attentive viewer
will be able to spot them there.
9
The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin are taking advantage
of this interim exhibition, which is anything but a
temporary solution, as a way to bridge the long
closure for construction works of the Altar Hall in the
Pergamonmuseum. The original Pergamon Altar will
only be available to view when its exhibition space is
reopened in 2024. Without the initiative of the Collection
of Classical Antiquities, this show would never have
come to be. What was your motivation?
AS
We archaeologists do usually have a relatively
matter-of-fact view of ancient times. Of
course, we get excited about particular works of art too,
and Pergamon sculpture is some of the best that Greek
sculptors ever produced. However, we are most of all aware
that we are looking after an important piece of the world’s
cultural heritage on Museum Island, which needs to be
accessible to the public as much as possible and should
be explained appropriately. Here, our new building, with
the panorama integrated into the exhibition, simply gives
the visitor a captivating and easy-to-grasp introduction.
Without having to travel to Pergamon themselves, visitors
are transported to the citadel in no time at all and can take
in the dramatic landscape as well as the most important
buildings in a panoramic view. Then there’s the theatrical
element, which Yadegar Asisi has a very strong feel for.
You can really feel that he has created sets and dealt
intensively with the practice of theatre. His understanding
of production and impact plays an important role here,
which is also particularly emphasised by the fully theatrical
and dynamic lighting of the panorama and the incredibly
atmospheric soundtrack by Eric Babak. In combination with
our scientific, objective approach, this seems ideal to me,
whereby the new presentation of the Pergamon sculptures
is presented and shaped in a much more compelling
way by the Asisi team’s artistic skill than in our restrained
permanent exhibition in the Altes Museum.
Of course we hope that in taking this kind of approach, which
Exhibits from the Collection of Classical Antiquities, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (Berlin State Museums), photos: © asisi
in my eyes is aesthetically very attractive, we can bring
people who would otherwise never come to a museum face
to face with classical antiquity. Many will come first of all to
marvel at the panorama and will then also experience the
magnificent ancient sculptures and perhaps come face to
face with Greek art and ancient culture for the very first time.
In this regard, I would be particularly delighted to interest
schools in Berlin and Brandenburg, as the panorama had
a very exciting impact on children and teenagers back in
2011. Now, the intricate virtual depictions of the Pergamon
Altar are added to the exhibition, which are shown in
cinema format and correspond with the viewing habits of
the younger generation. In any case, we would like to have
as many young visitors as possible!
10
Holy Seriousness
The origins of
theatre in Antiquity
In 129 CE, the Greek theatre in Pergamon was already
over three centuries old. It was built by order of the
ruler Attalos I for an audience of around 10,000 and
has all the hallmarks of a classical Greek amphitheatre.
The steeply rising semi-circular audience rows take
advantage of the natural hillside (300 metres above sea
level), as in the famous Theatre of Dionysus beneath
the Acropolis in Athens, or what was once the biggest
theatre of antiquity (audience of 15,000) in Syracuse,
Sicily. These giant open-air theatres are the result of
a long development whose roots lie in ritual dancing
and singing in honour of Dionysus, which was done in
ecstatic homage to this god of wine and fertility. There
is no doubt that a grove was the natural setting for these
rites, a sanctified piece of forest that was able to hold
such gatherings and was chosen for other aspects of
the landscape, such as the sea view. In this spirit, later
Greek theatres were often clearly anchored in landscape
and nature, which shaped their overall experience.
Pergamon, too, offers almost textbook examples of the
integration of the theatre between town and countryside.
The ecstatic singing and dancing developed into a choral
form of ceremony, and, if we accept the view of the birth
of ancient drama proposed by Nietzsche, this is followed
by tragedy, with characters placed opposite the chorus
11
Text: Thomas Irmer
The ancient Pergamon theatre, watercolour, Yadegar Asisi, 2010
who are commented upon and chastised by them. With
this development, the ceremony left the grove for its own The chorus of Greek tragedy, the symbol of the mass of the people moved by
specifically created theatres. What we know as ancient
Greek theatre, culminating in the traditional tragedies Dionysian excitement, is thus fully explained by our conception of it as here set
of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides from the
5th century BCE, is the endpoint of a long development forth. Whereas, being accustomed to the position of a chorus on the modern stage,
that touches on the roots of European theatre. From
the 6th century BCE, therefore, in the Dionysian spring especially an operatic chorus, we could never comprehend why the tragic chorus
celebrations in honour of Dionysus, religious rites and
state ceremonies were practically interwoven, and of the Greeks should be older, more primitive, indeed, more important than
the theatrical performances established following a
certain period of time were a key part of this annually the “action” proper... we have learned to comprehend at length that the scene,
recurring event, which led to the blossoming of theatre
and drama in Athens, but which was also the practice together with the action, was fundamentally and originally conceived only as a
in other city states of the time, such as Syracuse. On
three consecutive days, four plays each were staged by vision, that the only reality is just the chorus, which of itself generates the vision
a dramatist. On the fourth day, there were five comedies
by different writers. Four days of theatre in total. Citizens and speaks thereof with the entire symbolism of dancing, tone, and word.
didn’t just have free entry to this event, which also took
the form of a writers’ competition. As conscientious
citizens, they were encouraged to go. Today, seeing
17 new pieces – albeit with material familiar from Friedrich Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy (1872)
mythology – in four days would probably push some
professional festival attendees to their limits. As part
of the Dionysia, these theatre cycles of seven to eight
hours (in daylight) were seen as the high point of the
12 Holy Seriousness – The origins of theatre in Antiquity 13

festival calendar – the theatre festival as an exception

from everyday life and one of the cornerstones of our
culture, which still has an impact to this day. What took
place in the Pergamon theatre, which was only built after
this flourishing period, right after it opened, is not known.
The example of the Athens Acropolis with the spacious
theatre beneath it, close to several temples, leads one
to suspect that its use must not have been dramatically
different from that of the one in the metropolis across the
Aegean. Perhaps you could see tragedies and comedies
here by writers who were esteemed by their audience
but are unknown to us today. Without doubt, this theatre
is not just one of the major works of Greek architecture
as a whole. Its position and size also indicate its key
significance within the city-state.

It doesn‘t take a great deal of speculation to imagine

how theatre on the Greek periphery was transformed
under Roman rule and particularly during the Empire.
The tradition of the Dionysia and similar festivals
disappeared and their ritual roots were buried in
theatrical culture, just as the performance of tragedies
anchored in Greek mythology vanished. Instead, a
culture of spectacle, now linked to the Roman calendar,
entered the ancient Greek venues, which were converted
for this purpose, even though the general character of
these places remained. In the case of the Pergamon
theatre, the wooden stage house was replaced with a
stone skene and the orchestra (the semi-circular stage
in front) was turned into a defined arena. Both were used
for the gladiator battles and animal baiting that were
now popular. However, there was of course no space for
the equally popular chariot racing here. Nevertheless, it
must be pointed out that theatre in Pergamon as a whole
remained the largest public events space in Roman
times, which filled up again and again with people from
different levels of society. The theatre, which once came
from nature with Dionysus, claimed its place in urban
The ancient Pergamon theatre, watercolour, Yadegar Asisi, 2010

society, and was in constant transformation. Between

an animal sacrifice, ecstatic song and celebration of the
written word as theatre’s benchmark – until today.

THOMAS IRMER
born 1962 in Potsdam, completed his degree in German and English Studies at the University
of Leipzig in 1988. After receiving the Fulbright scholarship at SUNY Buffalo in New York, Irmer
completed his doctorate at the University of Leipzig in 1994. After concluding his editorial role on
Theater der Zeit in Berlin, he is now a critic with Theater heute and has been a writer and publisher
for Theater der Zeit since 2015. He also teaches American drama at the Kennedy Institute, FU Berlin.
Since 1988, he has contributed articles on literature, art and theatre for a variety of international
specialist publications. Since 1996, he has made various TV contributions for MDR, ntv and 3sat.
14
Pergamon in
ancient Greece
Bergama in
Turkey
There are just under 70,000 people living in Bergama.
As well as the usual urban concrete, which eats into the
bare sand-coloured mountains of the coast of Asia Minor,
there is also a historic old town. Yet on many houses
here, the shutters swing and creak. On side streets, the
wind rolls big clumps of tumbleweed through the dust,
the low houses look out of windowless holes, where cats
and humans squint in the afternoon heat. Old people
doze on the steps in front of buildings. A few times a day,
the muezzin’s call to prayer breaks the silence. As the
days pass, however, the blur of this chant soon becomes
the soundtrack of a time that is still shaped by people
and their leisurely activity.
Every Monday is market day. Local traders and farmers
come into town. Horsepower seems to make an
impression here, too: the men lean back with taut reins
in their hands on colourful kilim carpets they have laid
15
on their overloaded wagons and ride down the streets,
kicking up dust with their carts pulled by galloping
mules. Traders hold up wriggling, fidgety chickens or
haul skinned mutton hides, trays of vegetables or flour
sacks on their shoulders, bent from the daily burden.
For them, the day begins before the sun comes up. In
his café, Esref, a friendly 90-year-old man, brings the
plates over slowly, where a big pot of wonderfully warm
milk is bubbling with honey. Here, there is sweet tea and
kaymak, hard-boiled eggs, white bread, and all kinds of
new things.
Bergama old town with view of the citadel, © asisi
The historic market was never just a place to pick up
lettuce and grapes, but an agora, a place for sharing
opinions, for daily discussion. And there’s thick cigarette
smoke in the public writing room. A man taps away with
two fingers on an old typewriter. Each word is a matter of
animated discussion by all present. Boys duck through
16 Pergamon in ancient Greece – Bergama in Turkey
the moving crowds balancing tea trays on hooks. Black
tea that sparkles in the small glasses like liquid amber.
There are public baths in a 500-year-old hammam.
Small bakeries, simple cafés and a few shops selling
household goods and modern toiletries. And carpet
sellers, of course. Wealthy, colonial Europeans with their
turbo-charged capitalist misery can only kneel in shame
before the opulence of this simple life.
The ancient old town dates back to the 15th century and
is right at the foot of the citadel. It is the gateway to one
of the best-known sites in classical Greek antiquity. The
odd sign points this out, as the Pergamon excavation
site is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Yet the people
of Bergama have an unpretentious love of their antique
ruins. Its sensational value is almost by-the-by. The
Ancient ruins in Pergamon, © Gerhard Westrich
ruins have always been there and will remain when they
themselves are gone. The simple presence of Pergamon
high above the town, however, gives it an identity. It is
All great things
something they hold on to. The citadel’s aura makes time
stand still in a mysterious way. The hands of the few public
clocks, if they aren’t moving imperceptibly backwards,
are imperilled
seem at least to stand still. Do the ancient ruins guard
against pointless progress and the destruction of
our cultural landscape? A condition of uninterrupted
and fragile.
unconsciousness and mental space gives the irrational
impression of being in a space and time warp. But it’s
deceptive – the region and the people are simply poor.
Since the beginning of the Turkey crisis, tourists have
stayed away. Sometimes, the citadel is almost devoid of
people. Bergama is struggling with the decline. Many
Plato in the Republic
people make their living from Pergamon. The decline in
17
visitors is a financial disaster for the city and its residents.
Just a few years ago, a cable car was built to take tourists
from the valley to the mountain, so tour buses would stop
struggling through the cramped old town. An investment
that isn’t paying off. The hoteliers, too, are struggling to
rent their rooms. Recently, artists and intellectuals from
Istanbul are discovering the liberally governed west of
Turkey, settling here and renovating the houses in the
old town, at risk of collapse. A trip to Bergama is a wild
and romantic trip 100 years back in time. But it won’t be
for much longer. The town is slowly regenerating, again
by itself.
The lesson to learn is that Bergama is in Turkey.
Pergamon in ancient Greece. Following the expeditions
for Greek antiquities, in the early 19th century, the
rediscovery of Hellenistic antiquity began in what was
then the Ottoman province. The first cultural tourists
appeared in the town, climbed the hill, told people in
Europe about it, until archaeologists began to uncover
old Pergamon. Excavations, research and analysis are
still taking place to this day. Germans are involved, too.
Pergamon is a massive site. It was a Greek metropolis
for centuries. 150,000 people lived here. Nothing was
ever built on top. Just abandoned. But for a long time,
antiquity lay here undisturbed in eternal rest, sprawling in
the most graceful dilapidated beauty. There are columns
lying there as if they were rolled into place 1,000 years
ago, marble ruins, remains of statues and fragments are
tangled among thorns and tumbleweed. ‘All great things
are imperilled and fragile.’ Plato’s words are from a time
when Pergamon was still forming and the Greeks were
overwhelmed by the monumental nature of the Acropolis
in Athens. The Greek philosopher was speaking of the
subject of the monumental itself. All great things get
broken one day. All that remains are ruins. This can be
safely assumed. And ultimately, you collapse yourself like
a falling pillar and are almost overwhelmed by a century-
long nap as if it was a numinous ritual, lulled by a narcotic
concert of cicadas. But wait! According to mythology,
cicadas are the descendants of charmed people who
were made to forget themselves by the muses’ beautiful
song, so much so that they starved to death. In their
insect reincarnation, they can now sing without having
to eat or drink. But: they tell the muses if someone is
sleeping at noon instead of occupying themselves with
spiritual matters. Watch out for them. There’s no question
that muses and gods haunt the Pergamon ruins!
18
The Altar
A true literary discovery
It’s actually a crime novel. Although, of course, it’s
a long way from the literary genre as such. But even
knowing the outcome of the whole enterprise, this book
is a thrilling read. How will it all end? Not only does the
author know how to leave plotlines hanging; he also
turns thrilling conceptual corners. Yes, this novel also
contains a love story. And yes, it does have a happy
ending. The blossoming love between two young hearts,
Fritze and Riecke, whose lives are touched by the events
surrounding the hustle and bustle of antiquity in Berlin.
But this also tells us a bit about the societal and political
trends of the late 19th century in Berlin. However, this
book is most of all about a marriage of two greats:
the Pergamon Altar and the cool, couldn’t-care-less
Berliners. How to get these two together!
As well as the obsessively researched details of the
circumstances of the altar’s discovery, excavation and
installation in Berlin, Ralf Nürnberger tells the story of the
Berliners’ legendary pride. Even if, to the lay person, it’s
simply about dead stone. These marble blocks, statues
and rubble sent all layers of society into a frenzy. The
kind of thing people working in museums could only
dream of today. What modern-day Berliner has even
been to the Pergamonmuseum, except for maybe on a
school trip 100 years ago?
This book, written by a Berliner-by-choice, helps us
understand, probably for the first time, what it cost us
to have the Pergamon Altar in Berlin. A treasure. In non-
material terms. Yet the costs in, say, old German thalers,
that Berlin has spent since taking possession of the altar
almost 150 years ago, and will have to spend before it is
ultimately finally presented in the new Pergamon Museum
– it should be ready from 2024, construction gods willing
– are unimaginable. But we’re not talking about money.
It’s about feelings. About the sublime for its own sake.
Ralf Nürnberger opens his novel The Altar with a
resplendent military parade. On 18 January 1871, the
Prussian King William I becomes German Emperor. From
a historical perspective, there are a range of aspects that
are noteworthy about this. However, in his portrayal of
this defining event of the late 19th century, he focusses
quite practically on a range of incidental obstacles. The
fact that the old man, first of all, is not particularly excited
about the imperial pomp that surrounds him. And then,
plagued with gout, climbs onto his horse with great effort,
and rides away from the entire meaningless parade.
Following the capacious rear of the steed belonging
to his Prime Minister and Imperial Chancellor Otto von
Bismarck. This removes the imperial German national
tripe from the whole episode. Yet it’s worth playing Richard
Wagner’s Emperor Waltz, as he composed it for this
occasion, and this creates an immersive experience for
the reader, albeit with a slightly cabaret feel. Nürnberger
lingers over this epic military parade primarily to create
a visual panorama. A panorama of the nascent imperial
capital, Berlin. The City Palace is the splendid backdrop,
Friedrich Schinkel’s cathedral, which would later be
replaced by the great Berlin Cathedral, the National
Gallery site, the Bauakademie, the triumphal avenue of
Unter den Linden – all ultimately frippery in the face of
Above:
The excavation hut on the citadel.
Also known as ‘Reichshalle’. Around 1884
Carl Humann is second from left, standing
next to him in the doorway: Alexander Conze,
Spiritus Rector and Director of Excavation
© Collection of Classical Antiquities,
Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Top left:
The Altar – From Pergamon to Berlin.
A journey through time
A true literary discovery. 369 pages.
Hardback. Novel, EUR 13.90
Published late November 2018
ISBN 978-3-945305-05-8
the splendour in Paris and London. Prussia’s pomp and
circumstance only existed in the proverbial sense and
was on the cusp of collapse. It was founded primarily
on military might rather than on ornate aesthetic spirit.
And even though it was largely Napoleon’s looted art –
the whole world looked at the Louvre with undisguised
envy. It was time for a metropolis. Not just façades. There
needed to be something behind it. When it came to art,
culture and science, Berlin had a lot to catch up on. So
there we have the driving force.
Nevertheless, despite the German government’s desire
for progress, the fact that the Pergamon Altar is in Berlin
today in its current condition is down to an unbelievable
number of chance events. These began with the shirt-
sleeved pioneer of this undertaking, Carl Humann,
a transport engineer and amateur archaeologist in
Bergama, Turkey, who discovered the first parts of
the altar frieze, dug them up at his own expense and
sent them to Berlin with the sultan’s kind permission.
Where, in the archaeological collection of the museum,
unfortunately, nobody knew what to do with them. The
few fragments wound up in a warehouse. Today, the idea
will surely have many archaeologists’ hairs standing on
end.
It was Alexander Conze, the director of the royal
sculpture collection appointed by heir to the throne
Friedrich Wilhelm, that first recognised the significance
– years later – and ultimately directed, together with Carl
Humann, the real in-depth excavations in Bergama and
19
the complicated transfer to Germany, to Berlin, where
still nobody knew where to put them. After all, there
was still no museum for them. In Bergama, however, as
elsewhere in the Ottoman provinces, antiquities were at
risk of being reused as building material. And this still
feels like a fascinating adventure, albeit fictional in many
places. Not because the men displayed the ambition of
two cunning thieves. The Ottoman government readily
gave its blessing to the export. But the fact that the altar
still remains and did not end up in pieces in the kilns of the
mischievous local lime burners or turned into doorframes
by philistines is thanks to the foresight and prudence of
Humann and Conze. Wrapped up as fictional stories, this
book honours their energy in the literal sense. The reader
soon begins to fear for every giant’s toe. This is what
creates a large part of the tension in this novel.
With this book, author Ralf Nürnberger has succeeded
for the first time in creating a complex depiction of those
events, whose context he shares with his readers in an
entertaining way. He guides a broad cast of characters
through almost 400 pages. In Bergama, we encounter
Carl Humann as an appealing fellow, who as an inveterate
Westphalian, would welcome his guests with good
German beer. A prudent and cheerful man, who watched
over the treasure on the citadel with an eagle eye. At
the same time, at the court of Berlin, the culture-loving
heir to the throne, Friedrich Wilhelm, pulled the strings at
the Kronprinzenpalais to help develop Berlin’s museum
scene, bypassing the imperial majesty of his father, who,
despite or because of the stubbornness of old age, did
not want to cede control. Among others, Wilhelm Bode,
the namesake of the Bode Museum on Museum Island,
plays a key, albeit rather unfavourable and ultimately
comic role. With himself as the guiding star, Nürnberger
has the old man seeing ghosts at the end. All these
events are threaded through the action. And they come
together in the building of the first Pergamonmuseum.
It took an incredible 20 years before the pieces of the
frieze were actually on show in the museum built in Berlin
for the altar.
The people of Berlin threw wild Pergamon-themed
celebrations. The altar was even on show for a little
while as part of this. Accompanied by a crazed and
joyful parade. With 1,500 people in ancient garb. And
a panoramic image showing the altar on the Pergamon
citadel. The vibrations of the major upheavals of the
20th century were already palpable. Fritze and Riecke
survived hard times. In this book, they are the catalysts
for the state of the nation. The altar will not remain in its
new Pergamonmuseum for long. But that’s another story.
That Ralf Nürnberger might perhaps present to us in an
exciting second volume.
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