Open Monument Day: Discover Greifswald's hidden treasures!

Open Monument Day: Discover Greifswald's hidden treasures!

On Sunday, September 14, 2025, the Open Monument Day will take place at the University of Greifswald. Under the motto “Valuable: priceless or irreplaceable?” The event offers a varied program that focuses on the buildings and cultural assets of the 19th and 20th centuries. The event highlights a total of 71 listed buildings in Greifswald as well as the seven other protected buildings in the historic center of the old town, which represent a remarkable cultural history. The university is closely involved with institutions such as the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania State Office for Culture and Monument Protection and the Greifswald State Building and Real Estate Office in the renovation of these historical sites in order to preserve the region's cultural heritage.

The day's program includes four different program items, which include both lectures and guided tours. Two outstanding venues are the Old University Library and the Historical Greenhouses in the Botanical Garden.

Highlights of the program

• Alte Universitätsbibliothek:
  – Baujahr: 1880–1882
  – Architekten: Martin Gropius und Heino Schmieden
  – Führungen um 11:00 Uhr und 12:30 Uhr (Dauer jeweils 60 Minuten)
  – Voranmeldung erforderlich
  – Adresse: Rubenowstraße 4
• Historische Gewächshäuser:
  – Baujahre: 1884–1886
  – Führungen durch die Freilandanlage und Gewächshäuser um 14:00 Uhr
  – Adresse: Botanischer Garten, Eingang Münterstraße 2
• Vortrag „Zeugen aus Gips – vom Erneuern, Vernichten und Verzichten“:
  – Vortragender: Dr. Thilo Habel
  – Uhrzeit: 11:00 Uhr (Dauer 45 Minuten)
  – Adresse: Konzilsaal der Universität, Domstraße 11, Eingang 3
• Vortrag „Von Armleuchteralgen und Biberschwänzen – 100 Jahre Doktorandenhaus“:
  – Vortragende: Dr. Elisabeth Heigl und Prof. Dr. Irmgard Blindow
  – Austausch mit Doktorand*innen und Mitarbeitenden
  – Uhrzeiten: 11:00 Uhr und 14:00 Uhr
  – Adresse: Biologische Station / Tagungsstätte Hiddensee, Kirchweg 9a, 18565 Insel Hiddensee OT Kloster

The contact person for further information is Dr. Elisabeth Böker, press spokesperson and head of university communications. Anyone interested can contact them by phone at +49 3834 420 1150 or by email at pressestelle@uni-greifswald.de.

Additional program items in Greifswald

In addition to the university's events, other guided tours and lectures are offered in Greifswald's city center. These begin at the town hall on the market, where a guided tour on the topic of “Women in the history of the city and in the cityscape of Greifswald” will take place at 10:00 a.m. This event is led by historians and aims to shed light on the influence of women on the cityscape.

At 10:00 a.m. there will also be a lecture in the Citizens' Hall, which will focus on "775 years of the city of Greifswald: buildings from the founding century in the old town". André Lutze, an architectural historian, will address the historical aspects of this architecture. At 12:30 p.m. there will be a tour of the old town with the same topics.

Another interesting item on the program in the city center will be the tour of Frieda Stundl-Pietschmann and her contribution to fisherman's carpet weaving, which begins at 2:00 p.m. Finally, at 6:00 p.m., a guided tour of the Eldena monastery ruins will be offered, which deals with the structural development up to the founding of the city of Greifswald in 1250.

The discussion of cultural heritage and its significance is reflected not only in the historical buildings, but also in the scientific discussion of heritage itself. Key terms such as inheritance and heritage promote a critical discourse about the interactions between people, spaces and objects. This shows how important it is not only to preserve cultural heritage, but also to actively discuss and develop it. The urban environment is considered fertile ground for these discourses, particularly when examining the material and intangible dimensions of cultural heritage.

The University of Greifswald and the city community of Greifswald invite everyone interested to discover and celebrate the diversity and wealth of the sites worthy of monument protection.

Further information about the event can be found in the reports from University of Greifswald, Greifswald.de and TU Berlin.