Humboldt Forum

With the Humboldt Forum, a new center for cultures and sciences has emerged opposite Museum Island, between the Brandenburg Gate and Alexanderplatz, in Berlin’s historic heart. A place with a unique history.

The Humboldt Forum is fully accessible and much more than a museum. By bringing together outstanding collections with an ever-changing program of special exhibitions, theater, dance, film, talks, guided tours, and workshops, a visit inspires new insights into the world of yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

As a forum, the building serves as an open platform for exchange and cultural debate, involving artists, researchers, visitors, and international communities. It is shaped by four key institutions: the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation with the Ethnological Museum and the Museum of Asian Art of the Berlin State Museums, the Stadtmuseum Berlin with the BERLIN GLOBAL exhibition, Humboldt University of Berlin with the exhibition On Water. WasserWissen in Berlin and the Humboldt Forum Foundation in the Berlin Palace with exhibitions on the history of the site and the Humboldt brothers.

The creation of the Humboldt Forum is closely linked to the 800-year history of this location. Four exhibitions spread over more than 1,500 square meters tell the story of this often controversial site—from the medieval city and Dominican monastery around 1300 to 1536, through the centuries dominated by the palace, to the Palace of the Republic and archaeological excavations before the construction of the Humboldt Forum. A 28-meter-wide video panorama brings these historical facets to life. In the palace cellar, visitors can explore the only original remains of the medieval Dominican monastery and the cellar rooms of the Berlin Palace uncovered in 2008. Original figures from the palace façade are displayed in the Sculpture Hall. The diverse aspects of the site’s history are also illustrated by 36 decentralized presentations, known as “Traces,” which shed light on both its distant and recent past.

With more than 1,200 seats indoors and outdoors, three restaurants and a café offer a diverse culinary experience. The Lebenswelten Bistro in the Passage serves a varied menu focused on Berlin classics and a vegetarian bowl counter. At Schlüterhof, with outdoor seating by the Spree and facing Lustgarten, Deli Alexander invites you to enjoy international casual dining. The Forum Café in the grand staircase hall offers fresh cakes and snacks. From the rooftop restaurant Baret, featuring contemporary cuisine, visitors can enjoy a unique panoramic view of Berlin.