Neuer Garten Walking Tour (Self Guided), Potsdam

Meierei, the Dairy, was built to supply the royal court of Frederick William II of Prussia. Cows grazed on the land near the Marble Palace and landscape garden with the Meierei manufacturing butter and cheeses. It was built in 1792 by Andreas Ludwig Kruger using plans from Carl Gotthard Langhans.

A second story was added to the building in the mid-19th century. Frederick William IV hired architect Ludwig Persius and building Ludwig Ferdinand Hesse to add a tower, battlements and a pump house to the existing structure.

Meierei was no longer used as a dairy by the beginning of the 20th century. It was transformed into a popular restaurant in 1928. After World War II, the building fell into disrepair and remained unused until 1991. It was re-opened in 2003 as a restaurant and brewery, almost 200 years after its construction.

Visitors can go to Meierei for a meal or a drink during its open hours from noon to 8 PM Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday or noon to 10 PM on Friday and Saturday. The brewery serves non-alcoholic drinks like sodas, wine, coffee, teas and juices. It also serves a variety of beers, wines and mixed drinks.

The Muschelgrotte, known as the Shell Grotto in English, is a grotto located in the New Garden. It was commissioned by Friedrich Wilhelm II and built by Friedrich Ludwig Carl Kruger in 1794. It was modeled after the grotto in the palace gardens of Oranienburg.

Kruger designed the grotto to appear as though it was naturally occurring rather than manmade. To achieve this, the building was covered with bog iron stone, calcareous tuff, gypsum stone and slag from the surrounding region. The interior of the grotto was covered in glasses of various colors, shells and snails. The open, domed ceiling was designed by artist Bartolomeo Verona with birds and reeds flocked around the edges.

The purpose of the Muschelgrotte was for tea parties and dining. However, it was rarely used and fell into complete disrepair by the mid-20th century. Today, visitors can explore the Muschelgrotte where they will see the beauty behind the ruins of this structure.

Cecilienhof Palace (Schloss Cecilienhof) is a historic palace located in Potsdam. Constructed between 1914 and 1917, Cecilienhof was the last palace built by the House of Hohenzollern, which ruled over the Kingdom of Prussia and later the German Empire until the end of World War I. The palace is renowned for its role in world history as the site of the Potsdam Conference in 1945, where leaders from the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States gathered to make critical decisions that shaped the post-World War II world.

Designed in the style of an English Tudor manor house, Cecilienhof was inspired by various cottage and Tudor-style homes admired by Crown Prince Wilhelm, such as Bidston Court in Birkenhead, England, and Gelbensande Manor near Rostock, Germany. The palace's architectural style, characterized by its low structure and multiple courtyards, gives it a charming, understated appearance that belies its substantial size, housing a total of 176 rooms.

The interior of Cecilienhof was designed for Crown Prince and Duchess Cecilie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, with distinct areas like the central Ehrenhof courtyard, the intimate Prinzengarten, and surrounding courtyards. The ground floor featured public rooms centered around a great hall, with an oak stairway from Danzig. This floor included the Crown Prince's smoking room, library, and breakfast room, and a suite for the Duchess with a music salon and a cabin-like room by Paul Ludwig Troost, known for his ocean liner designs.

Cecilienhof is located in the northern part of Neuer Garten Park near Jungfernsee Lake. Originally designed in the late 18th century under King Frederick William II of Prussia, the park was later transformed into an English landscape garden by Peter Joseph Lenné. The park also features notable structures like the Marmorpalais, an orangery, an artificial grotto, the Gothic Library, and the Dairy in the New Garden, adding to its historical and architectural significance.

In 1990, Cecilienhof Palace and the surrounding parks were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognizing their cultural and historical importance as part of the Palaces and Parks of Potsdam and Berlin.

The Green House is a summer house in the New Garden. It was built as part of a trio along with the Brown and Red Houses. The Green House was part of Frederick William II's plan to create a park with an English landscape structure that would stand in contrast to Frederick the Great's Sanssouci.

The English landscape design was known for its architecture rather than natural elements like trees and water features. Any landscaping was meant to be allowed to grow wildly without delicate trimming. The Green House is one of the buildings that was designed to enhance the English-garden style. It is one of the few that still stands as it did when it was first built.

Other buildings that were designed at the same time as the Green House include the Marble Palace, the Palace Kitchen, the Orangery, the Gothic Library, the Pyramide, the Dairy, the Grotto and the Hermitage Pavilion.

The Pyramide is a masonic building located near the Marble Palace in the New Garden. It was designed by architects Carl Gotthard Langhans and Andreas Ludwig Kruger, who were freemasons. Its construction was ordered by Friedrich Wilhelm II. It was completed in 1792.

The building was used as an ice house. Frozen lake ice was stored in the floor of the Pyramide's cellar where perishable food was kept cool throughout the year. The cellar of the Pyramide is about five meters (16 feet) underground.

Visitors may not enter the Pyramide due to its poor condition. However, it is still a lovely sight that is an important part of any Potsdam tour. Along with the unique design, the exterior of the Pyramide displays Egyptian hieroglyphics and astrological signs.

Egyptian-inspired decor and architecture is found throughout the New Garden. Some of these items include a variety of obelisks, two Antinous statues and a sphinx. The Pyramide was the first Egyptian-inspired building on the grounds.

The Marmorpalais, known in English as the Marble Palace, was a royal residence built on the shore of Lake Heiliger in the New Garden. The Marble Palace was commissioned by King Friedrich Wilhelm II for use as a summer home by the Hohenzollern family. It was designed in the Neoclassical architectural style by Carl von Gontard and Carl Gotthard Langhans. Construction of the Marble Palace was completed in 1791.

The palace was originally a square, two-story building with a round pavilion on the roof. A stairway and gallery was also constructed on the roof to lead to the belvedere. A large terrace on the lake side had a stairway that led to the water where boat moorings were easily reached. The lake shore was also home to the palace kitchen, which was designed to resemble a romantic, classical temple ruin.

The Marble Palace was expanded with two side wings in 1797. These wings were designed by Michael Philipp Boumann using marble from the colonnades of Park Sanssouci.

The palace was significantly damaged during World War II. It was no longer used as a palace at that point and continued to fall into ruin. A restoration project began in 1988. It was not completed until 2009. The Marble Palace was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990.

The Marble Palace is only open on Saturdays and Sundays from November through April. During the summer season, the palace is open from Tuesday through Sunday from 10 AM to 5:30 PM. Visitors can explore on their own or wait for guided tours that take place every 30 minutes.

The Palace Kitchen (Schlossküche) at Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam was added after King Friedrich Wilhelm IV became king in 1840. He and his wife, Elisabeth Ludovika of Bavaria, used Sanssouci as their summer residence, leading to several expansions, including the transformation of the east wing into a multifunctional kitchen space. This included a Large Kitchen, bakery, coffee maker's room, the Silver Chamber (now the museum shop), and a pantry near the royal chef's room. The palace cellar, originally Frederick the Great’s wine cellar, was expanded to include storerooms, a dishwashing area, a patisserie, and an ice cream-making section.

One of the most significant features of the Palace Kitchen is the mid-19th century technological marvel known as the "cooking machine." This modern appliance of the era marked a departure from traditional open-flame cooking, allowing the staff to utilize heated plates on the stove. This innovation not only improved safety but also enhanced the efficiency of meal preparation for the court. The staff who operated this equipment resided in quarters directly above the kitchen.

Today, visitors to the Palace Kitchen can explore this historic space and view a variety of period items, including the cooking machine, copper cookware, porcelain dishes, pots and pans, baking trays, pudding and ice cream molds, and other kitchenware typical of the 18th and 19th centuries. The Palace Kitchen offers a glimpse into the culinary history and technological advancements of the time.

250 meters from the Marble Palace, in the southern part of Neuer Garten, stands the Orangery. This 86-meter long structure was built on order by Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm II, between 1791 and 1793. Designed by Carl Gotthard Langhanns, the Orangery was meant for overwintering valuable exotic plants – the capacity in which it still serves today.

Apparently, the architect took inspiration from Egyptian mythology – the entrance to the building resembles an Egyptian portal. On the east side of it, above the door, lies a guarding sphinx. Additionally, two black statues of Egyptian gods, placed inside the wall niches, adorn another semicircular entrance area. All these sculptures were created by Johann Gottfried Schadow.

Two halls, to the east and the west, are for plants. The one in the middle, called the Palm Hall (for its decor of palm trees), is exquisitely furnished with yew, plum and elm wood panels. Large windows and a central door on the south side open to a marvelous view of the perennial garden situated in front of the Orangery.

Apart from sheltering exotic plants, this representative Orangery traditionally has been used for various events during the summer period (June through September); the Palm Hall, in particular, often served as a concert hall. Back in the day, during public concerts, the musically inclined king himself could be seen playing here the cello together with a chamber orchestra. Presently, the tradition of classical concerts at the Orangery is still very much alive.

Gothische Bibliothek, known in English as the Gothic Library, is a two-story, octagonal tower surrounded by an arcade. The Gothische Bibliothek is made of sandstone with a neo-Gothic design. It includes a spiral staircase that leads outdoors to the terrace and a basement with large, stone arches. The tip of the building hosts a golden spire.

The library was constructed in 1794 at the behest of King Friedrich Wilhelm II. It was designed by Carl Gotthard Langhans to mimic a Gothic chapel, both inside and out.

The Gothische Bibliothek contained French literature and German classics. It did not contain the king's secret library, which was held in the Marble Palace. These books were moved to the Potsdam City Palace in the 1930s and were subsequently burned during World War II.

The building fell into great disrepair but was reconstructed in 1997. The tower remains closed to the public due to its unstable foundation.