thumb|right|250px|Berolina statue in Alexanderplatz,

Berolina is the female personification of Berlin and the allegorical female figure symbolizing the city. One of the best-known portraits of Berolina is the statue that once stood in Alexanderplatz.

Statue

thumb|First Berolina statue in Belle-Alliance-Platz, 1871

In 1871, emperor William I ordered an Berolina statue in Belle-Alliance-Platz (today's Mehringplatz), to glorify the homecoming victorious troops of the Franco-Prussian War.

Another statue was designed in 1889 by the sculptors (1846–1911) and Michel Lock (1848–1898) as a decorative element for the state visit of King Umberto I of Italy.

Name

Many Berliner companies are named "Berolina". A leading German film studio of the 1950s was called Berolina Film. In the past, there were several radio and television broadcasts in which references were made to the city's personification. Today, it is the popular name of central Berlin Police radio. A housing cooperative also bears the Berolina name.

In 1980s, the "Berolina" music awards were organized, sponsored by the TV networks ARD, ZDF and ORF, and hosted on television by Thomas Gottschalk on 27 August 1987 with a total of 15 musicians and bands. Günter Neumann, Ulli Herzog, and Alexander von Bentheim.

The Main belt asteroid 422 Berolina, is also named after the city.

Photogallery

<gallery class="center" caption="" widths="160" heights="200px">

File:1889 Berolina.jpg|Berolina in Potsdamer Platz, 1889

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-R75280, Berlin, "Berolina" am Alexanderplatz.jpg|Berolina in Alexanderplatz, 1900

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J03164, Berlin, Abtragen der Berolina-Statue.jpg|The statue in 1942

File:Berlin, Hausvogteiplatz, Tanzende Berolina von Axel Anklam.jpg|Dancing Berolina, sculpture of Axel Anklam, in Hausvogteiplatz (2004)

</gallery>

See also

  • Bavaria, personification of the Land of Bavaria
  • Berlino, mascot for the 2009 World Championships in athletics
  • Berolina (train), which ran between Warsaw and Berlin
  • Deutscher Michel, personification of German people
  • Flag and Coat of Arms of Berlin
  • Germania, national personification of Germany
  • Hammonia, personification of Hamburg

Notes

References

  • Berolina Statue website
  • An article of The New York Times