CUBA, ART & TRINKETS
[This English translation was generated using an automated translation tool based on ChatGPT, without any manual correction.]
Anyone who has climbed the 21 steps to the upper floor of the Vavilov building with Katrin Menzel and stands in front of a metal door with the sign "Roof Room 2.03" has no idea that a piece of institutional history is hidden behind this door. Or more precisely: numerous pieces. But even the head of the working group "Campus Management and Logistics" cannot stop being amazed just before Pentecost after she has opened the door.
Her path initially leads to a large display case. "This is good carpentry work from the time of the Academy of Sciences of the GDR," says the 57-year-old. "Recycling, Vavilov House" is written on a torn note on the glass cover. "So this good piece has to wait a bit longer," Katrin Menzel chuckles as she slowly makes her way to one of the many shelves. There, heavy wooden frames with display boards are stacked on top of each other. Under a dusty glass cover lie two rows of 23 test tubes each, containing samples from the bean variety. "Left wild forms and localities, right high-yield varieties," as the label reveals. "That would definitely be very interesting for Kerstin Neumann," says the campus manager. "She has been intensively dealing with bean diversity in the INCREASE project."
But in "Roof Room 2.03" there are still more treasures hidden. More than 40 heavy boxes from previous expeditions and collection trips are stacked in the corner. Partly made of wood, partly of cardboard with metal edges, says the 57-year-old after she has tapped some of the boxes. Where some of the boxes from the Academy of Sciences of the GDR were sent is written in large black letters on the side walls: "R. Inst. A. v. Humboldt." "That was the Tropical Institute of the GDR in Cuba," reports Katrin Menzel. And regarding the address addition "R. Boyeros," it is obviously not a researcher, as Katrin Menzel initially suspects, but a district of Havana.
These old expedition crates belonged to the
very special finds at Katrin Menzel's
tour through the attics.
With another wooden box, the assignment is even simpler: "Central Institute for Genetics and Crop Plant Research. DDR, 4235 Gatersleben. Dr. K. Pistrick" is written on the lid of a gray wooden box. The key dangles in the lock, and Katrin Menzel slowly lifts the lid. Among other things, a tent tarp, a collection bag, and a small pouch with plastic wing screws come to light. But there is also an old, heavy plant press, a botany drum, and a foldable camp bed to be found there.
"I could rummage around here for a long time, but we have to move on," emphasizes Katrin Menzel. So from the attic of the Vavilov building, they continue to the old onion floor. She opens an old, brown wooden door on the farmyard - and as they climb the steep stairs there, a strong onion smell immediately hits the nose. "Onions are still being dried here," says Katrin Menzel, pulling a small paper bag from the shelf and holding it under her nose. However, what stands out on the long attic is a massive, brown wooden cabinet. The 18 small compartments and four wide drawers are neatly labeled and would surely be a paradise for any DIY enthusiast. In addition to wood, sink, and cylinder screws, there are also nuts, rivets, and conduit pipes. "I wonder if anyone at this institute would still use this today?" says Katrin Menzel. After a quick look through an old harvest hatch at the front of the floor, they go through a side door straight to the next floor in the Friedrich-Miescher-Haus.
"Our problem child," says the group leader. Because on this attic, the marten often causes trouble and regularly calls for fire department interventions. The problem: The animals literally tear apart the insulations. At least: Today everything looks tidier than it did a few months ago. "We have cleared out quite a bit here," says Katrin Menzel. Two working groups have stored items here and labeled the areas with their respective abbreviations. As organized as it looks on the attic, it continues in a rather chaotic manner. Katrin Menzel opens one door after another until she finally stands in the break room of the "Physiology and Cell Biology" department.
From the Friedrich-Miescher-Haus, they continue to the library. "After so many stairs, we can take the elevator here!" decides the campus manager. Right at the front left, on the attic, there are numerous pictures leaning against the wall. Portraits, landscapes, plants. "Whether there are treasures among them, I can't say, of course," smiles the group leader. But not only art can be seen here, but also two old card index boxes. The compartments can be easily opened with a small metal handle, but the release for threading the index cards is stuck. "Two treasure chests are both pieces for me anyway."
Relatively unremarkable, it continues in the so-called drying room, the attic above the cold storage cells of the gene bank. "I haven't been here for at least ten years," says Katrin Menzel as she opens the room numbered 1.20. On the shelves are boxes with jars for the gene bank accessions and germination paper, but there is also an old Robotron typewriter still in its place.
"This place urgently needs to be tidied up," says Katrin Menzel at the last stop of the tour, the attic of genetics. In particular, the condition of the first of the three rooms is a thorn in the campus manager's side. One door further, however, it becomes historical again. Under green bed sheets, she discovers two old chairs. "They surely once belonged to the furnishings of the director's office," says the 57-year-old, making herself comfortable in one of the two chairs. From there, her gaze falls on a row of shelves full of old instruments. An old centrifuge, a frequency meter, and a light meter are there, as well as a narrow-gauge film camera.
After nearly two hours, the special tour comes to an end. "There are really still many treasure pieces lying on our attics," says Katrin Menzel at the farewell. "Maybe we can prepare and exhibit some of them." Anna Backhaus has already made a start. The head of the "Resource Genetics and Reproduction" working group placed one of the expedition boxes in her new office a few weeks ago. Katrin Menzel, on the other hand, has been looking for the old furniture from the lecture hall for some time. "I thought it would still be on one of the floors. Maybe I'll find it on one of the next tours over the attics."