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| Hollyhocks and perennials. |
This delightful villa, with its beautiful garden lies beside Lake Wannsee on the outskirts of Berlin, and was built in 1909 by Max Liebermann, a painter who became president of the Prussian Academy of Arts (1920-1935,) which assured a younger generation of artists an atmosphere conducive to new developments in many art forms. In the 1930's he was ostracized by the National Socialists and died a lonely and bitter man. His wife was forced to hand over this property to the regime, and escaped deportation to a concentration camp by taking her own life. Liebermann described the villa as his "Lakeside Palace" and he produced over 200 paintings here. The garden takes various forms, with a kitchen garden of herbs, the formal garden with many different plants and schrubs within Box hedges. The villa has a neo-classical appearance with two Doric columns at the main entrance, and a lovely "Eyebrow" window in the roof. The little building to the left below, was the gardener's house and is now the shop and ticket office. The day was pleasant, cloudy but warm, and e wandered around the formal gardens in the front and then walked down to the lake, through a less formal garden with its vast green lawn, silverbirch trees and white garden benches. The little cafe served tea, coffee and cake, which we enjoyed while sitting inside and looking out over a terrace planted with red geraniums. A very lovely place.
The house was returned the the Liebermann's daughter Kaethe in 1951, and was sold by her heirs to the city of Berlin in 1958. It went though many uses, but in 1997 the Berlin House of Representatives approved its use as a museum. It was completely renovated and the garden was restored using Liebermann's paintings of his "Palace." It was opened to the public in April 2006, and is maintained by the Max Liebermann Society of Berlin.
The house was returned the the Liebermann's daughter Kaethe in 1951, and was sold by her heirs to the city of Berlin in 1958. It went though many uses, but in 1997 the Berlin House of Representatives approved its use as a museum. It was completely renovated and the garden was restored using Liebermann's paintings of his "Palace." It was opened to the public in April 2006, and is maintained by the Max Liebermann Society of Berlin.
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| The villa with its formal garden, and a small kitchen garden to the right. |
The white fairytale palace,below, stands on "Peacock Island" and was built by Friedrich Wilhelm ll in 1794-97 as a place for the king to relax after his boat trips and to spend the night with his mistress Wilhelmine Encke. The palace has two circular towers, which are linked by a wrought-iron bridge to create the illusion of a medieval castle. It is clad in wood, which is painted to appear like stone. As the island's name suggests, peacocks wander around at will, and could be heard calling as we walked the path around the small island.
There are several other buildings set in the stunning landscaped gardens, including the Luise temple, the ruins of an abbey, the neo-gothic Cavalier's House and several animal sheds. The royal managerie was once here, which contained a collection of wild animals from around the world. These were later moved to more suitable accommodation on the mainland, and founded Berlin's famous zoo.
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| The White Palace. |
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| The Aviary, which contained several albino peacocks. This unique building dating from 1750 is one of the oldest surviving aviaries in the world. |
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