Station: [16] The Queen's Reception Room

You are now in the Queen’s Reception Room. In the past, people entered the Queen’s chambers from here—which is exactly the opposite direction of today’s tour.

The room immediately catches the eye with its colors. Yellow, red, and blue set the tone. If you look up, you’ll see various feminine virtues depicted below the ceiling. Such virtues were a popular decorative element. They often indicate that a room was primarily used by women. Here, this refers to its use by Queen and Empress Augusta. She is also depicted on the magnificent Berlin vase.

The word “virtue” is derived from “taugen.” It generally refers to outstanding qualities or an exemplary attitude. For this reception room, the virtues of faith, gentleness, loyalty, love of children, diligence, and steadfastness were chosen. It’s almost like a painted blueprint for the ideal mother of the nation. And at the same time, it reveals a great deal about the image of a queen that people wanted to portray here.

The fireplace side of the room is now dominated by two paintings. They were created by the court painter Wilhelm Barth. They depict two Prussian estates: the Bornstedt estate and Rheinsberg Castle. Originally, both paintings hung in Koblenz Palace. Wilhelm I and Augusta used it primarily as a summer residence in the years before they ascended the throne. 

There is also something in the window niches that is easy to overlook. There stand two vases from the Kaiser Wilhelm Palace. At first glance, they look like vases for flowers. But that is exactly what they were not. These vases, open only at the top, served as goldfish bowls. A surprising thought: elegant vases, but no flowers—only fish. The opacity of the vessels served a clear purpose: to preserve the goldfish’s vibrant color for as long as possible.

And in case you’re wondering how this is done today: Carotene is now added to goldfish food to prevent the fish from losing their color.