Renaissance 3/2015 - 1 Neville Rowle# 0he 2Basilica3 in the Bode-&'se'(+ a Central 4and Contradictor#5 ,pace %i / 1+ Berlin, $aiser-%riedrich-&'seu(/ 6eneral "iew of the Basilica in 1917/ In October 1904, the Berlin-based newspaper %ro( the (ain entrance one enters the i(- Continental Correspondence reported with reat posin hall sur(o'nted b# the reat do(e !an!are a visit to the recentl# opened $ai- in that 'npretentio's Rococo style, that has ser-Friedrich-&'se'(, called in the title o! the beco(e thro' h ,chl-ter .'ite historical !or article )the randest ('se'( o! !ine art in the Berlin, b't which is treated b# architects world*+ with b't a (oderate (eas're o! reco ni- tion/ 0he chie! orna(ent o! this hall is, in 1eville Rowle# 0he 2Basilica3 in the Bode-&use'(+ a Central 4and Contradictor#5 8'nstte9te/de 3/2015 - 2 ,pace con:'nction with the bold c'r"es o! the %or o'r anon#(o's reviewer, the Basilica is !irst staircase, a castin o! ,chl-ter3s power!'l and !ore(ost a space @ space o! orientation, stat'e o! the Great ;lector, which ne9t to space o! rest, space o! (editation/ I! the niches <errocchio3s Colleoni and =onatello3s 6at- are said to )e9hibit altar paintin s and sc'lp- ta(elata is reco nized as the randest e9- t'res*, no partic'lar wor8 is (entioned/ Dater in a(ple o! (odern sc'lpt're/ ?assin the review, paintin s o! the ('se'( are hi hl# thro' h a !ine well li hted connectin cor- praised, such as )Re(brandt3s wonder!'l &en- ridor, which will later on be decorated with nonite preacher*, or )the spirited and !anci!'l stat'es, we reach the Basilica, a roo( in ?an o! ,i norelli Ewhich is] !or the !irst ti(e iven ecclesiastical style e9tendin 'p thro' h proper pro(inence*/ 0hese paintin s (the !or(er two stories and whose si(ple di ni!ied !or( is on view at the Berlin Ge(Glde alerie, the lat- is re(iniscent o! ,/ &aria di Cari nano in ter has been lost since 19455 were not displayed Genoa/ Old ch'rch chairs orna(ent this in the Basilica, b't in the 2nd-floor alleries @ a roo( and !i"e niches on each side e9hibit choice that co'ld well be e9plained b# icono- altar paintin s and sc'lpt'res. 0he idea o! raph#+ a ?rotestant priest and his wi!e or a pa- ivin such a &'se'( a representative an od with his naked devotees were not espe- central roo(, which sho'ld serve at one ciall# suited !or this kind o! architect're/ 0he and the sa(e ti(e to aid people !indin works displayed in the niches o! the Basilica their way, as a place to rest and aze 'pon were, indeed, o! strictl# Catholic obedience @ its reat repose!'l o'tlines a!ter the (ani- co(in !ro( i(portant cities in Italy, !ro( &od- !old variet# o! the works o! art, and !inall# to ena with Antonio Be arelli3s Cr'ci!i9ion with An- ive rise to sole(n !eelin s as in a ch'rch els to <enice with Alvise <ivarini3s ,acra Con- !ro( which latter indeed (ost o! the works "ersazione/ ,tran el# eno' h, the 15th-cent'r# o! (odern art developed, @ this idea is :'st %lorentine altarpieces in the Berlin collection that as new as !r'it!'l/[1] better (atched the architect're o! the Basilica @ whether b# %ilippo Dippi, Andrea del Casta no, It wo'ld be too easy to (oc8 the e(phatic tone ?iero del ?ollaiolo or ,andro Botticelli @ were to o! the article, which borders on propa anda and be !o'nd in the 2nd-floor alleries, which rewrites art histor# in a c'rio's wa#+ settin An- athered the (a:or (asterpieces o! the ('- dreas ,chl-ter on the sa(e pedestal as =ona- se'(/ tello and <errocchio (a# appear so(ewhat e9- ,'ch a division was not incidental/ It !ol- a erated, whereas co(pletel# inacc'rate is the lowed ('se'( theories pro!essed b# Hilhel( co(parison o! the Basilica architect're with the Bode, the reat c'rator o! the Berlin &'se'(s 1Bth-cent'r# Genovese ch'rch o! ,anta &aria and active (ind behind the edi!ication o! the Assunta di Cari nano, as the !or(er is a direct $aiser-Friedrich-&'se'( @ to which he wo'ld derivation o! ,an ,alvatore al &onte, b'ild in posth'(o'sl# ive his own na(e/ %or Bode, the %lorence at the end o! the 15th cent'r#/ It is di!!i- ideal ('se'( sho'ld have roo(s li hted !ro( c'lt, however, not to !eel a certain e(path# with above @ a belie! stated as earl# as 1II3, in a this description+ the entrance to the present-da# (e(orand'( si ned b# ?rincess <ictoria and Bode-M'se'( is still (ar8ed b# this randiose her h'sband the Crown ?rince %rederic8 Hil- succession between a (on'(ental lobb# with a hel( (later )$aiser %riedrich III/*), b't whose baro.'e architect're dedicated to the lor# o! hostwriter was (ost probabl# Bode hi(sel!/[3] the Cohenzollern, and @ a!ter a corridor @ a )rep- In 1904, one did not necessaril# enter the $ais- resentative central roo(*, the act'al size replica er-Friedrich-M'se'( as described b# the Con- o! an ;arl# Renaissance %lorentine ch'rch+ the tinental Correspondence @ that is to say, directl# )Basilica* 4!i / 15/[2] towards the Basilica/ On the contrary, one was 1eville Rowle# 0he 2Basilica3 in the Bode-&use'(+ a Central 4and Contradictor#5 8'nstte9te/de 3/2015 - 3 ,pace Fi / 2+ Antonio Begarelli, The Cr'ci!i9ion, photograph taken %i / 3+ Berlin, $aiser-Friedrich-&'seu(/ <iew of the Basilica in the Basilica of the $aiser-%riedrich-&'seu(, Berlin, ca. in 1945/ 1910/ (eant to 'se the lateral stairs o! the entrance 0he decision to b'ild a basilica has been ri htl# hall to enter the second-floor roo(s @ either on interpreted as the debt o! Hilhel( Bode to a the ri ht-hand side, to the Italian schools, or on scholar he reatl# ad(ired in his yo'th, and to the le!t, to the %le(ish and Ger(an schools. 0he who( he was ver# close d'rin the last decades Basilica was not part o! the artistic path !ollowed o! the 19th cent'r#+ Jacob B'rckhardt/[4] 0he b# the visitor !ro( the ;arl# to the Ci h Renais- Basilica can be seen as a (aterialization o! the sanceJ it was rather conceived as a didactic tool, )Civilization o! the Renaissance* described in a allowin those who never went to Ital# to 'nder- !abled boo8 b# B'rckhardt bearin this title and stand not onl# the (on'(entalit# (i9ed with !irst p'blished in 1IB0/[5] B'rckhardt described a'sterit# o! %lorentine architect're, b't also the the ch'rch as a 8e# place o! the de"elop(ent o! variet# o! icono raphies and techni.'es repres- the Italian eni's. Ce also insisted on the p'blic ented b# di!!erent altarpieces, whether they were space o! the piazza, which was represented in (odeled or painted @ or so(eti(es both, as the Basilica (howe"er inappropriate it wo'ld de(onstrated b# the altarpieces in lazed terra- have been in a ch'rch5 in the two col'(ns sur- cotta b# Andrea della Robbia/ 0he Basilica was (o'nted b# a lion and a she-wol!, which sym- a place to learn, the 'pper alleries were spaces bolized, respectively, the %lorentine and ,ienese to en:o#/ states @ ho(es o! the !avorite schools o! Bode/ ,ince the Basilica displayed a histor# o! Renais- sance c'lt're, no (asterpieces o! paintin and 1eville Rowle# 0he 2Basilica3 in the Bode-&use'(+ a Central 4and Contradictor#5 8'nstte9te/de 3/2015 - 4 ,pace sc'lpt're were needed here, rather typolo ies. 0he (ost precio's works b# the =ella Robbia !a(il# @ the ones o! D'ca @ were displayed in the 'pper alleries; as !or =onatello, one o! Bode3s !avorite sc'lptors, one !o'nd hi( onl# 'pstairs (B'rckhardt hated =onatello, an artist he !o'nd too realistic and overrated5/ A !ew years a!ter its openin , the $aiser- %riedrich-&'se'( had alread# beco(e too smallJ even with the %irst Horld Har and the re- at crisis that !ollowed, ac.'isitions ne"er stop- ped and soon raised a proble( o! space/ 0he north win o! the ?er a(on &'se'(, which opened in 1930, was conceived as a ho(e !or the 1orthern ;'ropean collection/ In the Basili- ca, one ('st have !elt that the randiose archi- tect're looked so(ewhat e(pt# in its ori inal state+ soon a!ter the openin , the walls o! the la- teral chapels had been painted with neo-Re- naissance (otives 4!i / 25/ Cowever, no additio- nal works were displayed thereJ the new ac.'isi- tions were pri(aril# intended !or the alleries. 0hen ca(e the ,econd Horld Har/ 0he collections o! the $aiser-Friedrich-&'se'( were evac'ated at the be innin o! the con!lict, and !irst stored in the base(ent o! the ?er a(on &'se'( be!ore the# were transferred to %i / 4+ Florentine, 1Bth cent'ry, &ar>occo, Berlin, Bode-&'- b'n8ers in the Loo or in %riedrichshain, and in seu(, storage.