The Human Zoo
A historical “Völkerschau” in the Tierpark Hagenbeck.
(Photo: imago/Arkivi)
Almost two million visitors flock to Hagenbeck Zoo every year. The exotic jungle nights were a particular crowd puller before Corona. Few may know that the family-owned zoo, which has existed for 125 years, started with a seal show in the harbor and later invented the “open-air enclosure” at the Stellingen site, and also organized “ethnic shows” from 1875. Many went on tour in Europe. The Inuit and Sioux in particular attracted millions. Some showmen, for example from Togo, were organized themselves, and in the evenings they mingled with the high society in frock coats, much to the dismay of the local press. Hagenbeck has so far rejected an exhibition for critical appraisal.
hagenbeck.deopening hours 9 a.m. to 6 p.m
Bismarck’s headstand
Bismarck statue in Hamburg.
(Photo: imago images/Zoonar)
The largest of the approximately 600 Bismarck statues in Germany stands above the Landungsbrücken: the monument is 34 meters high. The city can hardly keep up with the removal of protest graffiti. A nine-million-dollar restoration of the monument to the first German Chancellor, who created German colonies at the urging of Hanseatic businessmen, led to heated discussions. Hamburg’s renowned colonial researcher Jürgen Zimmerer isn’t in favor of eliminating “colonial places of remembrance”: “They should be turned upside down or laid down and grants should be given to people from the former colonies. That creates greater aha effects.”
Bismarck Monument, Seewartstr. 4 in the Old Elbe Park
Everything must Go
Commemorative heads of a king from an unknown workshop of the bronze foundry guild Igun Eronmwon (Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria, 19th century).
(Photo: Daniel Reinhardt/picture alliance/dpa)
The Hamburg Museum of Ethnology recognized the signs of the times early on and in 2018 adopted the somewhat unwieldy name “Museum am Rothenbaum – Cultures and Arts of the World” (MARKK). Director Barbara Plankensteiner is campaigning for restitution, the return of colonial art, not only in Hamburg: “We are currently assuming 5,000 objects in 120 German museums.” The MARKK is currently showing all of the Benin bronzes (photo) in its possession in a special exhibition. The transfer of ownership to the country of origin, present-day Nigeria, is scheduled to begin in 2022. Some African countries even want to build museums for their stolen history.
markk-Hamburg.deTue until sun 10 until 6 p.m., Thursday to 9 p.m