Germany's Holocaust Memorial - Assignment Example

Berlin Holocaust Memorial The Denkmal fur die ermordeten Juden Europes or Monument to the Murdered Jews of Europe was opened on May 12, 2005, the 60th anniversary of the fall of the Nazi regime and the end of the Second World War. The monument was designed by an American, Peter Eisenman, as a tribute to the Jews who died before and during World War II. It is located on what used to be the Ministry Gardens, next to a large complex of buildings which included the Reich Chancellery, Hitler’s main office.

After the war, it was used to be part of the Berlin Wall. The memorial occupies a total space of 19,000 square meters (205,000 square feet) and consists of 2,711 unmarked gray stone slabs. Eisenman designed it in a way that each stone slab is unique, positioned on uneven ground at varying heights. Some are taller than an average person while some are just as high as the ankles. Visitors are encouraged to wander through the paths and they can enter the monument on all four sides. Eisenman designed the monument to create a sense of instability, and the maze of stones tends to disorient some visitors.

However, the designer of the monument hoped that the memorial will become a natural part of the city, and offer a respite for its citizens after a busy day. At the base of the monument is a subterranean Information Center, where visitors can find more information about the monument’s design and construction. It also features stories of several individuals and families who faced persecution of the Nazis during the war. The Information Center is open day and night. The monument serves as a silent reminder of a past that most people would want to forget.

May it also serve as a symbol of hope for the future generations. May each stone slab remind us all that no one has the right to take another man’s life for personal ambitions. May we all learn from our history, so that the acts of infamy committed by such unlawful men will never happen again.