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Up in the Dome

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-Look Up, Look Down Challenge, Week 92

Every Thursday, I publish a post containing photos taken from above or below, and invite you to join in the challenge by posting your own images with an up or down perspective.

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Last week we enjoyed the all-encompassing views of Berlin from the top of the Reichstag.

This building has had a pretty traumatic history.  The originally incarnation was the design of Paul Wallot and was completed in 1894 in the wake of German national unity.  It was a mix of classical and modern styles, with a columned portico and a modern glass and steel dome.  It played host to many important events in German history including the proclamation of the first German Republic in 1918, following the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II and the end of the monarchy.

However, its heyday was short lived; in 1933 it was severely damaged by a fire and suffered further destruction during World War II.  It remained in its ruined state for many years, but was partly reconstructed in 1961 to act as a venue for parliamentary committee meetings in what was then West Berlin.

Following German reunification on 3 October 1990 the Bundestag it was decided to make berlin the capital again and the Reichstag the seat of Parliament.  The British architect, Sir Norman Foster, was commissioned to carry out the daunting reconstruction project, and contrary to his initial designs the authorities insisted on incorporating a new dome.

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Foster embraced this requirement, making it a major feature, and an eco-friendly one at that.  The topmost portion of the dome is open to the sky and a central funnel immediately below that feeds natural light and ventilation into the plenary chambers below, and captures rainwater.

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A spiral walkway winds its way up and down the dome, providing great views of both the outside and the inside.  The curved glass, metal framework and a massive metal blind that rotates around the dome in line with the sun, work together to create a real feast for the eye.

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The interior views really do compete for attention with the views across the city, and are probably more vertigo-inducing.  If you peer carefully through the glass at the base of the funnel you can even see people sitting in the plenary chamber below.

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The Challenge

Click here to enter the challenge

Welcome to week 92 and a huge thank you to all who participated last week.

All are welcome to join this challenge; do please share your up or down perspective with us.  Simply create your own post as normal, create a link to this challenge and click above to enter your link and view other entries.  If you have any difficulties with the linky, please just leave your link in a comment below and I will upload your thumbnail.

Finally, please don’t forget to go and visit the other challengers and pass on your views and encouragement.

To find out more about how to enter, click here.  The linky list will open each Thursday at 00:01 GMT (or a bit before) and will normally be open for one week. 

Also linked to the Photo Gallery.
aDSC_0636_ppCopyright Debbie Smyth, 10 June 2015

31 replies »

  1. Pingback: Lines and Curves in Berlin | Travel with Intent

  3. what a cool place – and the lines in that first image – and sections – so artsy!! and week 92 already? my my my – time flies when we are having fun.
    have a nice weekend Debbie 🙂

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  15. One of the things I love about Berlin is about their amazing and spacious buildings – this one I don’t know because we were there in the 70ties. Love your capture about the base of the building! About your reply about the workshops you do: soo interesting – I’ll come back to it later!

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    • You would barely recognise it now. With the wall down and so much new and renovated it’s like a new city. And so much art. You would be in heaven!

      Sent from my iPhone

      >

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      • I’m sure I would be in heaven – now even more because the East side of the city has the more spacious and big buidlings – when the wall came down a friend sent us a little chunk by mail:) Amsterdam has a lot of historical things, but I think I would choose Berlin because of all the art:)

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  22. Interesting shots – it’s a great place to take photographs. I was there in 2003, but seem to have lost all my images but one….most annoying!

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