The Day of Open Monuments (Tag des offenen Denkmals) took place once again on the weekend of the 10th to 11th September, as part of a nationwide initiative called “European Heritage Days”. The weekend as a whole takes place on the second Sunday of September every year, with monuments and historic places opening their doors to guests, free of charge. This is all part of the biggest and most popular event in Germany in the field of monument preservation. Visitors could take their pick of hundreds of offers throughout Berlin, without need for tickets. Instead, guests could simply register at the attraction with no booking required.

This year, the Day of Open Monuments adopted the motto ‘The Search for Clues. On the road with monument preservation’ - ‘Spurensuche. Unterwegs mit der Denkmalpflege.’ As part of this, the countless architectural, ground, and garden monuments were opened and introduced to visitors, alongside tours of settlements and districts of the city, facilitated by longer bus and bike tours. The weekend features venues and monuments spanning from mosques, art academies, churches and other fascinating locations which constitute Berlin’s intriguing cultural landscape.

The event truly had something for everyone, with cultural events, children’s programmes and more to entertain and learn something new. Through numerous collaborations also with embassies throughout the city, guests could discover more about different cultures previously unfamiliar to them. This was utilised, for instance, by the French Institute through opening their doors at the Maison de France to explain the history of the building, alongside raising awareness of the French presence in Berlin.

• - https://denkmaltag.berlin.de/