Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection"

Objects. History. Stories.

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection"

26 May 2026 Editors

On Thursday, May 7, 2026, the exhibition “Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection” was officially opened in the foyer of the Pei Building. In addition to Prof. Dr. Raphael Gross, Prof. Dr. Charlotte Klonk and the exhibition’s curator, Dr. Wolfgang Cortjaens, also spoke at the event.

DHM President Raphael Gross during the Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection" © DHM/Harry Schnitger

DHM President Raphael Gross stands on stage and welcomes the guests, who are standing throughout the foyer on all floors, looking up at the stage.

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection" © DHM/Harry Schnitger

A view from the ground-floor foyer of the stage, looking over the heads of the standing guests. In the distance, guest speaker Charlotte Klonk can be seen at the lectern on stage.

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection" © DHM/Harry Schnitger

Prof. Dr. Charlotte Klonk stands at the lectern and delivers the opening remarks for the exhibition.

Charlotte Klonk gave the introductory speech at the Exhibition Opening © DHM/Harry Schnitger

Wolfgang Cortjaens, curator of the exhibition “Objects. History. Stories,” stands at the lectern and gives an introduction to the exhibition

Wolfgang Cortjaens, curator of the Exhibition “Objects. History. Stories.”, during his speech © DHM/Harry Schnitger

A view of the open foyer, where event guests are standing on all floors, looking toward the stage. On the stage, the exhibition curator stands at the lectern and gives an introduction to the exhibition.

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection" © DHM/Harry Schnitger

Pictured are Charlotte Klonk, Wolfgang Cortjaens holding a bouquet of flowers, and DHM Raphael Gross after they delivered their speeches.

Charlotte Klonk, Wolfgang Cortjaens and Raphael Gross © DHM/Harry Schnitger

People standing in the lobby of the Pei Building, chatting during the exhibition opening of “Objects. History. Stories.”

Impressions of the Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection" © DHM/Harry Schnitger

Exhibition view of the exhibition “Objects. History. Stories.“ In the center of the image is a display case containing a hexagonal chest illuminated from within. In the background, several people are examining a timeline.

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection": A hexagonal chest with a model of the German Stadium, Berlin-Charlottenburg, by Gustav Baumann (Berlin/Potsdam, 1912 (model), 1923/24 (chest)) is on display in the showcase © DHM, Photo: Harry Schnitger

View of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection", Visitors can be seen in the background.

Impressions of the Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection". In the front, a table decoration for International Labour Day on 1 May, Portugal, Mai 1981 is on display © DHM, Photo: Harry Schnitger

A visitor stands looking at the painting „… and everything will be good again. 3 October 90 in front of the Neue Wache“ (Berlin, 1991) by Matthias Koeppel

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection" © DHM/Harry Schnitger

In the photo, you can see several visitors standing bent over display cases or walking through the exhibition “Objects. History. Stories."

of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection", in which several people can be seen walking through the exhibition. A man in the foreground is examining an object in a display case: an engraved ostrich egg featuring motifs from Jan Huygen van Linschoten’s *Itinerario* (Netherlands, ca. 1600/1620)

View of the exhibition “Objects. History. Stories.”, focusing on an object in the center of the image: an engraved ostrich egg. The display case is softly lit, while the space around it remains dark.

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection": An engraved Ostrich Egg with motifs from Jan Hyugen van Linschoten’s "Itinerario" is on display (Netherlands, ca. 1600/1620) © DHM, Photo: Harry Schnitger

Visitors to the exhibition are looking at a bunk bed that was once in a refugee shelter. The beds are made of wood and were manufactured by Ikea.

[Translate to English:] Das Bild zeigt eine relativ dunkle Ausstellungsansicht von „Objekte. Geschichte. Geschichten. Blick in die Sammlung“ mit dem Fokus auf eine Brettspielkassette für Mühle, Schach und Tric-Trac, die u.a. aus Bernstein, Ebenholz und Silber gefertigt ist.

Opening of the Exhibition "Objects. History. Stories. Reviewing the Collection": On display is a board game box for nine men’s morris, chess, and tric trac, dated “5. Aprilis 1607” © DHM, Photo: Harry Schnitger