Accession books of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin: Antikensammlung Berlin

Reporting period 1822 – 1989

The inventory volumes of the Antikensammlung Berlin (Collection of Antiquities) were mainly compiled in the 19th and 20th centuries. Older precursors, some of which also include objects from the later Antikensammlung Berlin, can be found in the archives of the Münzkabinett (numismatic collection), but are not included here. Many of the relevant inventories were created in the years around the opening of the Altes Museum in 1830. At that time, a distinction was still made between the collection of ancient and post-antique sculptures and plaster casts on the one hand, and the Antiquarium on the other, which was a collection of ancient ‘small antique objects’ (vases, terracottas, bronzes, gems, silver, glass, jewellery, etc.). It was not until the beginning of the 20th century that these two formerly independent departments were merged to form the ‘Antikensammlung’; in this context, a complete inventory was also created, the first entry of which was given the number 30,000 (hence the name ‘30,000 inventory’). An inventory organised by year was not introduced until 1958 in the West Berlin section of the collection in Charlottenburg and was retained as the sole classification system after reunification.