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Ancient Near Eastern Cultures

Permanent exhibition
Pergamonmuseum

The Vorderasiatische Museum (Museum of the Ancient Near East) ranks alongside the Louvre and the British Museum as one of the world's leading museums of ancient treasures of the Near East. Shown in an area covering 2,000 square metres the exhibits convey an impression of six thousand years of history, culture and art in the ancient Near East.

Fourteen rooms are devoted to this collection in the southern wing of the Pergamonmuseum. The collection contains many important examples of architecture, reliefs and smaller objects. Some are of great world significance and were once excavated by German archaeologists. They originate from the Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian and northern Syrian/eastern Anatolian regions which today include Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.

The Babylonian monuments

One of the major attractions lies along the main axis of this section of the museum. Here visitors can walk through and wonder at the world-famous reconstructions of brilliantly coloured Babylonian monuments: the Processional Way, the Ishtar Gate and the facade of the throne hall of King Nebuchadnezzar II (604 - 562 BC). Sections of the buildings were re-created to approximately the original dimensions by meticulously re-assembling the many broken pieces of excavated glazed bricks. Along the walls depictions of lions, bulls and dragons symbolize the major gods of Babylon.

The main attractions in the Babylonian Hall include the model of the Tower of Babel which was dedicated to Marduk, the chief god of the city, and a copy of the famous stela bearing the laws of King Hammurapi.


A permanent exhibition of the Vorderasiatisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin.

The Ishtar Gate and Processional Way from Babylon
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Vorderasiatisches Museum
Event at Neues Museum © Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / Marcus Glahn
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / Marcus Glahn
Herbstferien-Programm 2021 für Familien und Jugendliche
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart – Berlin / Valerie Schmidt
Bode-Museum and Pergamonmuseum
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / Photo: David von Becker
Die Zimmerleute halten den Zimmermannsspruch
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Group portrait with Assyrian queen (left to right: Stefan Geismeier, Nadja Cholidis, Lutz Martin, Helen Gries and Daniel Meyer)
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Vorderasiatisches Museum / Photo: Olaf M. Teßmer
Ischtartor im Pergamonmuseum
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Foto: Olaf Tessmer
Detail of the Ishtar Gate reconstructed in Berlin: Depiction of a mušḫuššu dragon on glazed bricks
© Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Vorderasiatisches Museum / Olaf M. Teßmer

James-Simon-Galerie, Bodestraße
10178 Berlin

partially wheelchair accessible
Please note: Pergamonmuseum is exclusively entered through James-Simon-Galerie!
Site plan: Entrance to the Pergamonmuseum and Neues Museum (PDF)

All groups meet at the information desk at the upper foyer in James-Simon-Galerie, entering by using the big stairway.
Advice for group visits to the Pergamonmuseum an the Neues Museum (PDF)

Due to a technical issue, the lift is out of service until further notice, meaning the Museum für Islamische Kunst is not currently wheelchair accessible. The major architectural exhibits – such as the Processional Way, featuring the Ishtar Gate and the Market Gate of Miletus – are still accessible to people with mobility issues. 

 

U-Bahn: Museumsinsel (U5)
S-Bahn: Friedrichstraße, Hackescher Markt
Tram: Am Kupfergraben, Hackescher Markt
Bus: Staatsoper, Lustgarten, Friedrichstraße

Low-carbon public transport connections
Local traffic
Long distance

Sun closed
Mon closed
Tue closed
Wed closed
Thu closed
Fri closed
Sat closed

Opening times on public holidays Opening Hours

Pergamon museum
12,00 EUR Concessions 6,00
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Museum Island + Panorama
24,00 EUR Concessions 12,00
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Annual Ticket from 25,00 EUR

Tel 030 - 266 42 42 42 (Mon - Fri, 9 am - 4 pm)
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