Chapel of the Holy Spirit in Berlin-Mitte

Holy Spirit Chapel, Berlin-Mitte – Concept and Technical Site Management

Restoration and Conservation of the Holy Spirit Chapel

The Holy Spirit Chapel on Spandauer Straße is the only remaining building of the medieval Holy Spirit Hospital and is among Berlin’s oldest structures. Constructed around 1300, it underwent several architectural changes. Significant alterations include the installation of the current star vault with late Gothic painting around 1520. With the construction of the adjacent commercial college in 1905 and the relocation of the hospital, the chapel’s use changed, serving subsequently as a lecture hall and finally as a cafeteria.

The restorative investigations, carried out in several phases from 1995 to 2005, aimed at preparing, developing, and implementing a restoration concept, ultimately leading to the recovery of the room shell from around 1520. Jörg Breitenfeldt was charged with the restoration project management and conception. The project was completed in 2005 in collaboration with the architectural office Hüffer & Ramin (Ursula Hüffer).

The restored room appearance, assured by restorative findings, conveys the impression of a medieval space without restoring it to its original state in detail. The now-visible rendition from around 1520, with the exposed paintings in the vault, the red vault ribs, window traceries and embrasures, and the conserved and supplemented brick floor, restores a previously unimagined solemn and dignified atmosphere to the interior.

The Holy Spirit Chapel possesses Berlin’s oldest and nearly completely preserved roof truss, with the wood dated to the year 1476 according to dendrochronological studies. A special restoration concept for combating dry rot in the masonry and for the original wooden beams was developed and realized, allowing for the complete preservation of the roof truss and the historical masonry. To ensure structural stability, a static substitute construction was installed.

The development of the restoration concept for the facades considers results from finding investigations, construction research, and archival research, as well as the fundamental recognition of the current structural condition as a historical inventory and part of the building history of the Holy Spirit Chapel. Through this acceptance of historical inventories combined with a balanced restoration of the renderings on the window traceries and blind windows, the facades today convey their surprisingly high-quality and originally intended effect, even though they no longer represent a specific state due to many historical changes.

Services

• Creation of the restoration concept (interior, roof space, and facade), construction research, and inventory recording with damage and construction phase mapping
• Development of methods for exposing the multiple overpainted vault paintings
• Conservation-restorative concept for the complete preservation and renovation of the 15th-century roof truss
• Restorative investigation of archaeological excavations
• Creation of specifications for restoration measures and conducting a multi-stage performance competition
• Coordination of conservation services in the planning and execution phase and technical site management

Implementation Period

2001 – 2005

Construction Cost

Approx. €2.75 million / Area: approx. 160 m²

Client

Humboldt University Berlin, Building Department

Patrons

Deutsche Bank, German Foundation for Monument Protection, Cornelsen Foundation, Krone Management & Technologie GmbH & Co. KG