Nikolaiviertel

The Nikolaiviertel is where Berlin began, a settlement around the Nikolaikirche of about 1230, the city's oldest building. The quarter was destroyed in 1944 and lay empty for decades; for Berlin's 750th anniversary in 1987 the East German government rebuilt it, restoring a few surviving structures and filling the rest with new buildings in prefabricated concrete panels moulded and finished to suggest historic facades, which is unusual and much argued over. The Nikolaikirche is now a museum. The Ephraim Palace, a rococo corner house dismantled in 1935, was rebuilt here using its stored original facade parts.

History

Old Berlin and Cölln, across the Spree, grew up along an old trade route at the Mühlendamm, a ford where the river was easy to cross, and the Nikolaikirche, first a late Romanesque basilica, was built about 1230. The medieval lanes around it survived largely intact for centuries until they were destroyed in the Second World War, and for Berlin's 750th anniversary in 1987 the quarter was rebuilt in a mixture of reconstructed historic houses and concrete slab blocks (Wikipedia, Nikolaiviertel).

What to look for

• The Nikolaikirche - Berlin's oldest building, now a museum.
• The 1987 rebuilding - historic-looking facades in prefabricated concrete.
• The Ephraim Palace - a rococo facade rebuilt from stored original parts.
• The Spree setting - the quarter on the river beside the old city centre.

When to go

April to October; the quarter is small and walked in an hour. Museums close Mondays. Restaurants fill the lanes in summer evenings.

What to expect

Almost everything is 1980s construction imitating older forms, which some find dishonest. The quarter is small and touristic. Only the church and a few parts are genuine.

Nearby

Alexanderplatz lies northeast; Museum Island is west.

Key facts