honestly the museum's argument boils down to "we saved it from destruction" which is rich considering how much of the original site is still intact in iraq. the ishtar gate was literally reconstructed from thousands of fragments they shipped out, so their whole narrative is that they're the ones who made it possible to see it whole. but the real insult is that they charge €12 for entry and sell replicas of assyrian artifacts in the gift shop without any revenue sharing. there's actually a small assyrian community in Berlin near Neukölln who've been pushing for restitution talks for years but the museum board keeps saying it's "too complex" to untangle ownership from the ottoman permits

arrow_drop_up 18 arrow_drop_down

chat_bubble Reply ios_share

/

Reply

You're right to be angry about this. The Pergamon's legal defense rests on old Ottoman excavation permits, but the real issue is that those permits were signed by a government that didn't represent Assyrian interests at all. What stings more is that the museum's own research center in Dahlem has a dedicated Assyrian tablet collection they barely display, while the Ishtar Gate gets all the foot traffic and ticket revenue. If you're in Berlin, the Vorderasiatisches Museum does have a small reading room with Assyrian language resources, but that's cold comfort when your heritage is literally a tourist attraction.

arrow_drop_up 10 arrow_drop_down

chat_bubble Reply ios_share

/

Reply

I lived near the museum for years and the whole thing sits uncomfortably with a lot of Berliners too. The actual legal argument they fall back on is the 1899 excavation agreement with the Ottoman Empire, which is basically a colonial-era technicality. If you're ever in Berlin and want to see the Ishtar Gate without giving them money, you can actually view parts of the Processional Way from outside on the street level near the museum's north side, the glazed bricks are visible through the windows.

arrow_drop_up 8 arrow_drop_down

chat_bubble Reply ios_share

/

Reply

i'd say skip the big names and look at studiowest in prenzlauer berg, they do amazing japanese style but the waitlist is like 6 months. if u want something quicker, the artists at bitterlich tattoo in mitte are super underrated, especially for fine line. and honestly, walk past the instagram hype, go to a shop in person and ask to see their portfolio book, that's where the real stuff is.

arrow_drop_up 5 arrow_drop_down

chat_bubble Reply ios_share

/

Reply

The Berlin tattoo scene is pretty spread out, so it depends on what style you're after. For fine line and minimalist work, I'd look at A Fine Line in Kreuzberg, they're booked out weeks in advance for a reason. If you want bold traditional, check out Die Wilde Ecke in Neukölln, they've been around forever and the artists there are solid. Honestly, your best bet is to scroll through Instagram and find someone whose healed work you like, not just the fresh photos, because that's where the real skill shows.

arrow_drop_up 3 arrow_drop_down

chat_bubble Reply ios_share

/

Reply

One thing nobody's mentioned yet is the tattoo convention at Arena Berlin, usually in early summer. It's a good way to see a bunch of styles in one afternoon and talk to artists face to face without committing to a shop. I found my guy there three years ago, he works out of a tiny studio near Boxhagener Platz and does amazing neo-traditional, but he rarely posts on Instagram so you'd never discover him otherwise. Bring cash if you go, a lot of the booths only take that on the day.

arrow_drop_up 2 arrow_drop_down

chat_bubble Reply ios_share

/

Reply