The new research center complements the archaeological park both programmatically and scenically in the ensemble of burial mound, museum, and garden. The orientation towards the burial mound creates a spatial focus in harmony with the museum. It is rooted in the slope of the museum’s garden by virtue of its upright and reclining position. The building is present, but restrained: the small-scale façade structure conveys the context and contrasts with the massive museum building. As a service building, the research center is characterized by functionality, pragmatism and integration into the existing building. The architecture thrives on simple volumetry, legibility of construction and attention to detail. This minimalism is contrasted by the play of openings in the grid and the lively texture: the wood cladding refers to traditional half-timbering and creates an interplay of light and shadow.

The organization of the building is simple and readable. The clear separation of the research area and the public lecture hall is apparent in the cubature, but the building presents itself as a unified whole. The ascending volume in the east accommodates the stacked functions of the research center, while the lecture hall with foyer adjoins the base in the west. A joint with adjoining rooms connects the usage areas and allows for synergies in the access infrastructure. The main entrance is located on the ground floor. In addition to the connection to the lecture hall, the storage area, finds depot, workshops and shower in the basement form a unit of use. The multi-function room and the document archive on the ground floor are located in the heart of the building and are connected to the offices and the social area on the upper floor by a open staircase. The lecture hall is accessed through the winter garden.

The open space design seamlessly integrates the new research building into the existing museum garden and its topography. By lowering the terrain at the level of the lower playground, a new community space is created as the entrance to the lecture hall. A planting island with benches characterizes the space in front of the hall, while an adjacent play area is created to the east. The new area is connected to the Museum Garden’s network of accessible pathways, and a landscaped staircase connects the auditorium’s forecourt to the level of the upper pavilion and the existing staircase. The top plateau continues the access road to the building. This creates a quiet, separate entrance area for researchers.

Congratulations to Lehmann Architekten (1st prize), hammeskrause architekten (2nd prize) and BJW Architekten (3rd prize)!

Design: caspar. | Werner Sobek | studio grüngrau | hhpberlin
Awarding authority: State of Hessen

Visualizations: © caspar./moka-studio