At the heart of the Cold War, Berlin once embodied a tightly policed no-man's-land divided by the Iron Curtain as it now hosts an exhibition exploring facets of that tumultuous period.
Berlin’s Cold War Museum, not far from the Brandenburg Gate which was itself divided by the wall, opens on Nov. 26 with an interactive exhibition exploring various aspects of the Cold War period between 1947 and 1991.
The “capital of the Cold War,” as curators call it, was also the focus of tensions between Moscow and Washington, and visitors learn about the Soviet blockade of western Berlin and the ensuing Western airlift to deliver critical supplies to the city.
The space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union is among the subjects of the museum, which also explores the history of Western and Soviet spies in this city.
A dark wall at the entrance of the museum, located within walking distance of the U.S. and Russian embassies, is meant to symbolize the Iron Curtain.
From juxtaposed cosmonaut and astronaut suits to a Soviet aerial spy camera, visitors can expect two floors filled with exhibits explaining key phases of the Cold War.
With interactive stations, the initiators want to appeal above all to younger people and school groups who had no direct contact with the decades of conflict after World War II.
Berlin is already home to a family-friendly "Spy Museum" from the same creators and museums explaining life in the city when it was divided by a wall.
