January 2001 - Nr. 1
Temporary Wunderkammer opens in Berlin
TWIG
- The general public will have a rare opportunity to examine some of the
cultural and scientific treasures from the teaching collections of Berlin’s
Humboldt University this winter. The exhibition Theatrum naturae et artis
("Theater of Nature and Art") is modeled after a Baroque
Wunderkammer of specimens illustrating the marvels of nature and the human
imagination. Some 1,100 artworks, documents, scientific instruments and
natural history displays have been drawn from the Humboldt University’s
holdings of over 30 million objects. Highlights of the exhibition include
meteorites dating from the dawn of the solar system, unusual anatomical
specimens from the collection of pathologist Rudolf Virchow, and the
skeleton of a prehistoric whale that was once passed off as a sea serpent
and sold to a Prussian king. Theatrum naturae et artis runs from December 11
to March 4, 2001; more information and an overview of the exhibition are
available, in German and English, at www2.hu-berlin.de/hzk/theatrum/
.
