ORANGERIE CHARLOTTENBURG

The Grand Orangery. Charlottenburg Palace. Berlin.
West Wing, East Wing or Orangery Terrace? It sounds princely and is truly regal. Stucco adorns the high ceilings, and the floor features a chequerboard pattern. Light floods in from two sides through the large arched windows. In days gone by, orange, bitter orange and lemon trees spent the winter here. This ‘outdoors within indoors’ effect lends grandeur to the space.

In the Orangery Hall, the red-veined marble stretches right up to the dome: a touch of roof, a touch of sky. That’s how they saw it back then, too, as they danced through Baroque summer nights. History whispers in every corner and arrives in the present: with underfloor heating, a permanently integrated sound system and Wi-Fi. You see, King, things are happening! A building is always a stage for whatever demands the limelight in its own time.