Next to the steam tug "ANDREAS", the flagship of Berlin's Historic Harbor - the BBSG [Berlin-Brandenburgischen Schiffahrtsgesellschaft], lies the exhibition barge "RENATE- ANGELIKA". In her hold is installed a waterfront pub and an exhibition about the history of inland shipping, a particularly special attraction of our museum, On the one hand she offers a home for gatherings and celebrations in the organizational life of the BBSG. More importantly she offers the interested public an insight to the history of inland shipping with a comprehensive depiction of texts, graphics, drawings, photographs and models as well as scholarly articles , loans from partner museums, and authentic objects from the collections of museum members.
The barge itself is an exceptional example in the Museum's collection as she is a "Berlin Scale Barge" [note: inland shipping barges have historically been designated according to the lock dimension of the canal system for-in which they were designed to operate]. Her dimensions are 46,42m [150ft 10in] length, by 6,60m [21ft 9in] beam and a deadweight tonnage of 404 metric tons.

Chronology:
In April 1992 "RENATE-ANGELIKA" assumed her new role as exhibition ship through the installation of the permanent exhibition: "Berlin was Built by Barge" ["Berlin ist aus dem Kahn gebaut“]. Responsible for the design of this first exhibition were the Brandenburg Museum and the Berlin History Workshop [Berliner Geschichtswerkstatt] under leadership of Susanne Köstering. The concept of the exhibition was the presentation of facts and perceptions of the history of regional inland shipping particularly regarding the booming urban development of the European metropolis: Berlin.

"The Garden of the Arts" [„Der Garten der Künste“] ... who remembers it today? In August 1993 the exhibition "Do you know Stralau and its Fisher Procession?" ["Kennen Sie Stralau und seinen Fischzug?"] opened on the grounds of "Alt-Stralau 29" [note: Stralau is the historic fishermans' village of Berlin on the peninsula in the Spree east of Treptow] A small delegation from the BBSG took part and agreed that the exhibit should also be displayed in the exhibition barge in the Historic Harbor.
On the 14th of May 1994 it opened. The artist Michael Stalherm from "Garten der Künste" pulled the available exhibition materials together again and worked energetically on the installation in the exhibition barge. The exhibit returned there to the arts/exhibition space "Alt-Stralau 29" as "Fish and Ships". [cf. www.garten-der-kuenste.de]
At the opening of the 1995 season the museum was able to present the much-viewed special exhibit "From Friedrich's Canal to the Milldam" [„Von der Friedrichsgracht zum Mühlendamm“]. At the new location of the Historic Harbor was documented the pregnant history of urban- and hydraulic engineering- development of this historical city district. It was especially fascinating for younger visitors to learn that before the socialistic city planning, with the five point-tower apartment houses, there had existed over hundreds of years a small-scale rambling development of a fisher folk village. This should really have been restored after the vast devastation of the second world war, but was however completely cleared away. [Think Jane Jacobs on "Urban Renewal!]

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