House of Bavarian History Regensburg, Germany

The cathedral is and remains the outstanding building of the episcopal City of Regensburg. The new museum fits naturally and confidently into the historical city profile. With respect and esteem for this beautiful city, it carefully places itself in the urban context, but with its sculptural, emblematic spaciousness also shows the special importance of the Free State Museum for the whole of Bavaria.

By understanding and analysing the old, a conceptual approach to what is new can occur. However, the observer is required to accept the path of adaptation and transformation of the existing structures.

With the cathedral window as the closing point of the epilogue of the permanent exhibition, visitors to the Museum are confronted with the present. This provokes visitors to question their image of Bavaria with regard to the past and to future developments. The view into the museum from the street gives an introduction to the ideas of the museum planners with ambiguous, ironic neon signs.

Very flexible units have been created for museum operations with the 2,500 square metre column-free area of the permanent exhibition, the 1,000 square metre divisible multi-purpose room or the 360-degree panoramic cinema on the ground floor providing visitors with clear insights into the location’s history before they enter the museum.

The museum as an integral part of the city’s image and society, but also as a distinctive building element with the manifestation of the Bavarian self-perception.