The Bode Museum on Museum Island in Berlin is home to one of the world’s largest collections of ancient sculptures, Byzantine art, and coins.
The Bode Museum in Berlin displays one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of European sculptures from the Middle Ages, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and neo-Classical periods. It also includes the Museum of Byzantine Art and a huge numismatic collection (coins and medals). Despite the importance of the sculpture collection, the Bode Museum is often overlooked and therefore one of the quietest museums to visit on Berlin’s Museum Island, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Buy tickets online or use a museum pass or Berlin Welcome Card + Museum Island to skip the lines for priority admission to this wonderful museum.
Bode Museum on Berlin’s Museums Island
The Bode Museum opened on the tip of Berlin’s Museumsinsel in 1904 as the Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum to display the Prussian collection of European paintings and sculptures on an equal footing. Severely damaged in the Second World War, the museum reopened in stages between 1948 and 1986 but was only fully restored in 2006.
In East Germany (DDR), Emperor Friedrich was not acceptable and in 1956 it was renamed after Wilhelm von Bode, the famous Berlin museum director at the time of its original construction. After the unification of Germany, grand plans for a large new museum to again display the best paintings and sculptures together faltered on cost grounds with the top paintings now in the Gemäldegalerie (Paintings Gallery) at Kulturforum.
The Bode Museum is probably the least visited of the Berlin State Museums on Museum Island making it a quiet haven of exquisite art. This largely reflects current global tastes — Old Master paintings are currently more popular than sculptures whether in the Gemäldegalerie Berlin, the Louvre in Paris, or the Uffizi in Florence. The quality of the art on display, whether sculptures or paintings, is magnificent.
Permanent Exhibitions in the Bode Museum on Museum Island in Berlin
The main permanent exhibitions in the Bode Museum include:
Skulpturensammlung (Sculpture Collection): European sculptures from the early Middle Ages to the late 18th century. Around 1,700 sculptures (700 large, 1000 figurines or other small items) are displayed and complemented by 150 paintings from the Gemäldegalerie.
Museum für Byzantinische Kunst (Museum of Byzantine Art): 300 items from late Antiquity and Byzantine art (3rd to 15th century).
Münzkabinett (Numismatic Collection): around 4,000 coins and medallions displayed from the half million in the collection spanning the 7th century BC to the present.
The main exhibitions in the Bode Museum are spread over two floors — the German and Byzantine art are mostly in the Spree galleries (left when walking into the museum) and the Italian works in the Kupfergraben Wing (on the right). The older sculptures are mainly on the ground floor, including the Byzantine Museum, medieval, and Gothic sculptures. Some of the most impressive Italian Renaissance works are also on the ground floor.
The upper floor has mostly Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical works. Here are also several smaller rooms and cabinets with statuettes, miniatures, and the most important coins and medallions.
Visitors enter the Bode Museum through the great dome hall with the large bronze baroque Reiterstandbild des Großen KurfürstenFriedrich Wilhelm von Brandenburg (Equestrian Statue of the Great Elector), 1703, by Andreas Schlüter. Entry to this grand entrance hall with its baroque and classical architectural elements is free, as is access to the cafe up the grand red-carpeted staircases.
From the great dome hall, ticketed visitors enter the museum via the Kamecke Room and the large basilica hall. The Basilica, inspired by an Italian church, is the main link between the great dome area (main entrance) and the small dome (stairs to the upper level). The religious sculptures displayed in the basilica are mostly according to the original Bode schema, although he placed more works on the main floor. Several of the colorful terracotta works are by Florentine artist Andrea della Robbia.
Access to the upper floor is via the winding staircase flanked by sculptures of Venus and Mercury by Jean-Baptiste Pigalle under the smaller dome. In the basement, a small exhibition explains the history of the museum and a plaster cast copy of the baptismal font of Siena was installed in 2024.
Do pick up and study the floorplan map of the museum — some top works, including the Donatellos (Room 121) and Ravenna mosaic (Room 115), are almost hidden in deadends. Works are mostly displayed chronologically and by geographic region but there is no fixed or recommended route — follow the numbers to not miss anything. A closed door is not necessarily a locked door.
Top Sculptures Displayed in the Bode Museum
The variety of items on display in the Bode Museum ranges from small ivory carvings to major architectural elements. The larger sculptures are easy to enjoy but also study the exquisite statuettes with finely carved details.
Some of the best sculptures in the Bode Museum and some personal highlights include:
Tilman Riemenschneider Woodcarvings
Tilman Riemenschneider (c. 1460 – 1531) is Germany’s best and most famous sculptor and woodcarver. His lime-wood carvings, especially exquisite large unpainted altarpieces, are his best works.
The Bode Museum has around a dozen Riemenschneider works including:
Select pieces from the High Altar of the St Madalenenkirche in Münnerstadt:
The Four Evangelists: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John — absolute highlights in the museum.
The Risen Christ appears to Mary Magdalena (Erscheinung des auferstandenen Christus vor Maria Magdalena / Noli me tangere) — side panel from the altar.
St George and the Dragon (Hl. Georg im Kampf mit dem Drachen — a freestanding, limewood sculpture
Saint Anne and Her Three Husbands (Die hl. Anna und ihre drei Ehemänner) from the Marienkapelle am Milchmarkt in Rothenburg ob der Tauber.
“Riemenschneider is never theatrical. His art does not shout. It articulates convincingly and softly. We recognize our hopes, our weaknesses, our aspirations … His talent resides in making God approachable on a personal level and in that sense he is, if you want, a Reformation artist, even though he worked for the Catholic Church all his life.”
Julian Chapuis, former director of the Bode Museum in Berlin: Quoted in Germany — Memories of a Nation by Neil MacGregor (quite an interesting read.)
Large Gothic Altars
Some of the large Gothic altars and parts of altars include:
The Altarpiece from the Minden Cathedral: Coronation of the Virgin and Apostles (Das Hochaltarretabel des Doms zu Minden: Krönung der Maria und Apostel), Westphalia and probably Lübeck, base c. 1220, upper wing altar 1425, oak.
The Carrying of the Cross from Lorch in the Rhine Valley (Kreuztragung Christi), possibly Mainz, c. 1425, terracotta
Altarpiece with Scenes from the Passion of Christ (Retabel mit Darstellungen aus der Leidensgeschichte Christi), Antwerpen, early 16th century, oak
Adam and Eve in the Bode Museum
Many of the statuettes and ivory carvings include depictions of Adam and Eve — a rare scene allowing the medieval artist to portray the naked human body. This section is enhanced by a Lucas Cranach painting of Adam and Eve — he painted these in high volumes, so the Gemäldegalerie has a few further versions (as do many major art collections).
Less common is the ivory carving of Adam and Eve as Lovers (Adam und Eva als Liebespaar) by Zacharias Hegewald, c. 1630. The couple is in bed; no snake to be seen. A modesty sheet can be unpinned to reveal (presumably) their naked genitals — no exposed photo seems to exist.
Reusing Torsos from Antiquity
Two sculptures by French artists used torsos from antiquity to create new marble sculptures in Rome in 1731: Lambert-Sigisbert Adam d. Ä. created a Bacchus, while Edme Bouchardon used a child for the Genius of Abundance (Genius des Überflusses).
Restoring and recreating statues from antiquities were an important source of income for many artists living in Rome for centuries. In the free Friedrichswerdersche Kirche just off Museum Island near the Humboldt Forum in Berlin are several 19th-century alterations by German artists living in Rome.
Italian Sculptures in the Bode Museum in Berlin
The Bode Museum has a wealth of Italian sculptures ranging from the Middle Ages to the Classical. The Renaissance works, including the Donatellos, are particularly famous.
Donatello in the Bode Museum in Berlin
The Bode Museum has a rich collection of works by Donatello. Wilhelm von Bode was a Donatello expert, which made it possible to acquire on the open market many artworks not yet identified as being by Donatello. (He did not always get it right.)
The two most important Donatello works in the museum are the Pazzi Madonna (marble relief, c. 1420) and the Putto with a Tambourine (small bronze statuette, c. 1429). The museum has many further works attributed to Donatello or his workshop.
Many further portrayals of the Madonna and Child demonstrate how the Renaissance master influenced other artists. These include a Virgin and Child with Saint Dominic and Saint Peter Martyr, c. 1435, tempera on panel, by Fra Angelico. (Further works by Fra Angelico are in the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin, Alte Pinakothek in Munich, and of course, most famous, in the Museo San Marco in Florence.
Catholic Italian Sculptures
The Bode Museum has a large selection of religious sculptures from Italy. In addition to the colorful Andrea della Robbia terracotta works, other works include:
Early woodcarvings from various churches in Italy, including the large Madonna as the Seat of Wisdom, 1199.
The Annuncuation (Verkündigung an Maria), from Lucca, c. 1500, painting on pappelholz, modern frame.
Mary from an Annunciation group, Francesco di Valdambrino, Siena, c. 1420, walnut wood
Italian Sculptures in the Bode Museum in Berlin
Many Italian sculptures were inspired by Roman mythology or are completely secular in nature. Many are terracotta or burnt clay and studies while the top works are of course in marble:
Andrea de Verrocchio – Sleeping Youth (Schlalender Jüngling), c. 1470/80, terracotta, probably a model made for study by his students (who included a young Leonardo da Vince).
Vincenzo de’Rossi — The Dying Adonis (Sterbender Adonis), c. 1560, terracotta, a clay model for a large marble commissioned by the Medicis and now in the Bargello Museum collection.
Giambologne (or more likely a follower?) — Hercules Slays the Lernean Hydra (Herkules als Bezwinger der lernäischen Hydra), Florence, c. 1600, burned clay, freestanding male nude.
Bernini, Pietro and Gian Lorenzo — Satyr with Panther (Satyr mit Panther), Rome, c. 1615, a marble cooperation between Pietro and his teenage son Gian Lorenzo.
Bernardino Cametti — Diana as Huntress (Diana als Jägerin), Rome, 1717/20, marble.
Camillo Rusconi — Faun from the Train of Bacchus (Faun aus dem Gefolge des Bacchus), Rome, 1727-28, marble.
Antonio Canova — Dancer (Tänzerin), Rome, 1809-12, marble.
Pacetti’s Barberini Faun / Sleeping Satyr
Arguably the most famous sculpture from antiquity in Germany is the legspreading naked Barberini Faun / Sleeping Satyr (Der Barberinische Faun) in the Glyptothek in Munich. The Bode Museum in Berlin has an interesting copy.
Vincenzo Pacetti acquired the Barberini Faun in the late 18th century and made this clay model in 1799 in Rome. He probably used this model in preparation for the restoration of the famous marble from antiquity that Bavarian King Ludwig I acquired in 1813 for the Glyptothek in Munich.
Pacetti’s model of the Sleeping Satyr is displayed in the Tiepolo Cabinet — a room decorated with the fresco cycle Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo painted for the Palazzo Volpato-Panigai, Nervesa, in 1754. This was lost in the war and recreated from surviving photos.
Byzantine Highlights in the Bode Museum
Only around four halls are used for the Museum of Byzantine Art. These include miniatures, sarcophagi, reliefs, and architectural elements.
A colorful highlight is the Apse Mosaic from San Michele in Africisco in Ravenna, 545/546, restored and altered in the 19th century. Christ the Saviour is at the center flanked by the archangels Michael and Gabriel. The upper part depicts the Final Judgement with Christ and seven angels.
The lovely apse mosaic from Ravenna is almost hidden in a dead end (room 115) – the opposite side of the great dome from the equally hidden Donatellos (room 121).
Coins and Medals
Only around 4,000 coins and medals are displayed from the half million in the Numismatic Collection which covers the full history of coin stamping from the 7th century BC to the present.
Although the coins are grouped in only four rooms, so many coins are a bit much for the average visitor, especially as the larger sculptures are so easy to enjoy. It may be sensible to just pick out a few in each room to admire rather than trying to take it all in.
Some highlights include:
Berlin Aboukir Medallions — gold medals from around AD 211-235 found in Egypt in 1902, with portraits of Alexander the Great
Dekadrachma, Athens, Greeece, after 467 BC
Solidus, Theodosius II., Turkey, 437 AD
Christian Wermuth: Renovations of the Berlin Residential Palace, 1704
Coins from various parts of Europe and the hundreds of small states that were only united into Germany in the late 19th century.
First Euro coins and designs.
More, especially Roman coins are displayed in the Altes Museum while many of the other coins in the collection may be inspected on prior request in the study room and library in the basement of the Bode Museum.
Mirror Cabinet from Merseburg
An interesting display, once again almost hidden in the passage leading to the cafe on the upper floor, is the Mirror Cabinet from Merseburg (room 233).
This rare late Baroque Rococo era room cabinet was commissioned by the Duke of Saxe-Merseburg in 1712-15. The mirror cabinet uses an impressive interplay of gilded carvings and mirrors to display the porcelain and treasures of the ducal family.
It was restored in 2005 by the Museum of Decorative Arts but is currently in the Bode Museum. Unfortunately, it is displayed without any further items.
The Grüne Gewölbe in Dresden is worth visiting to see such displays in use on a far grander scale. (Many of the items from Merseburg ended up in Dresden when the family became extinct in 1738.)
See More Sculptures in Museums in Berlin
Roman Sculptures in the Altes Museum in Berlin
The Sculptures Collection in the Bode Museum covers the Middle Ages to the late 18th century but the Berlin State Museum’s sculptures range from antiquity to the present. Several visits to the best museums in Berlin are necessary to see them all — the three-day Berlin Museum Pass is a great deal or for some the Berlin WelcomeCard Museum Island.
Older sculptures are mostly in other collections on Museum Island Berlin: the Egyptian Collection and pre-history items are in the Neues Museum (New Museum), while Near and Middle East, Hellenistic, and Islamic art are in the Pergamon Museum (closed until 2027). Roman, Etruscan, and classical Greek antiquities are in the Altes Museum (Old Museum).
See 19th-Century Sculptures in the Free Friedrichswerdersche Kirche in Berlin
Any ticket with a scanable QR code is a skip-the-line ticket. Pick up the free audio guide and then go directly to the exhibition entrance without queuing at the ticket counter.
Take a free paper map — it is easy to miss some of the exhibitions, as some doors are kept closed (but unlocked) without a clear indication that further displays await.
The location of the museum cafe under the grand dome and up the processional staircase past the equestrian sculpture is grander than the food on offer but the cake is quite good. The cafe and the dome area are open to all without needing a museum ticket.
The entrance of the Bode Museum is from the far end of Museum Island. The entrance under the grand dome is easily accessible from either side of the Spree River but not directly from the other museums on Museum Island. The busy railway line cut the Bode Museum off from the rest of the island — a historical issue problematic both for the museums (vibrations) and the railways (slow and no space for expansion).
To reach the Bode Museum on foot from the Old Museum (Altes), New Museum (Neues), or Old National Gallery (Alte Nationalgalerie), cross the Kupfergraben Canal of the Spree River at the bridge next to the James-Simon-Gallery and turn right. Walk past the Pergamonmuseum (closed until 2027). Former chancellor Angela Merkel’s private apartment is the one directly opposite with a balcony (and police at street level). Go past Das Panorama where several of the Greek temple sculptures are on display and cross back over the Spree to enter the Bode Museum via the grand entrance with a large dome.
It is also possible to walk via the opposite side: cross the bridge next to the Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral). This route is only marginally longer but gives grand views of the Greek temple-like Alte Nationalgalerie, the rear of the formidable Pergamon Museum, and the neo-Baroque wings of the Bode Museum.
Public transportation options are any that work for Museum Island such as U-Bahn 5 and Bus 100 or Bus 300. The closest public transportation stops are Am Kufpgergraben on tram M1 or M12 or Monbijouplatz on tram M1 or M5.
More on the Berlin State Museums (Staatliche Museen zu Berlin):
Notenew opening times for many Berlin museums since mid-April 2024 — several are now closed on both Monday and Tuesday.
Many passes and multi-museum tickets offer savings (Kulturforum / Museums Island). Individual museum ticket prices range from €8 to €14 (€20 for special exhibitions). Online tickets are skip-the-line — go directly to the gallery entrance to scan the code.
For more general information on the Berlin State Museums:
Ticket Prices for Berlin State Museums (prices for museums, temporary exhibitions, combination tickets, online time-slot reservations). Buying online from GetYourGuide is easy. A ticket with a QR or bar code is scanned directly at the entrance — no need to pass by the ticket desk (but pick up the free audio guide before entering).
Museums closed in 2024: The Pergamon Museum is closed until 2027 (some sculptures are on display in Das Panorama), the Museum Berggruen is closed until 2025 (much of its collection is traveling the world), the permanent collection of the German History Museum (Zeughaus) is closed but temporary exhibitions continue in the Pei Building.
More Museum Reviews and Museum-Specific Information:
Home » Germany » Visit the Bode Museum to See the Best Sculptures in Berlin
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