From Berlin's Reichstag to Tbilisi's President's Residence

The Reichstag building in Berlin, Germany, is historical. It houses the German parliament. Opened in 1894, it housed the Reichstag until 1933 when it was severely damaged in a fire. Dutch communist, Marinus van der Lubbe, lit the fire. After the Second World War the Reichstag building fell into disuse. After the reunification of Germany on October 3, 1990, reconstruction of the building commenced. Architect Norman Foster completed the renovation in 1999. It became the meeting place of the modern German parliament, the Bundestag.

Foster won an architectural contest for the design of the building, but he made modifications afterwards. The original design did not include a cupola (dome). The Reichstag is the second most visited attraction in Berlin – mainly because of the large glass dome that was erected on the roof as a gesture to the original 1894 cupola. From inside it has an impressive view of the city.

The President’s Residence in Tbilisi looks rather similar to Foster’s Reichstag building.

The Presidential Office of Georgia was constructed from 2004 to 2009. Designed by Italian architect, Michele De Lucchi, he also designed the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the government of Georgia, the hotel Medea in Batumi, and Tbilisi’s striking ‘Bridge of Peace.’

Tbilisi’s President’s Residence has three floors. The first floor holds the museum where the President’s gifts from foreign leaders are held for viewing. The second floor has the Ekvtime Takaishvili Hall for official meetings. The Office of the President of Georgia is a combination of a work office and a library, which are on two floors. On the third floor is the hall for official receptions and ceremonies – and the dome of the presidential office.

The dome was constructed in Germany from three-dimensional bent glass. Georgian architect, Vakhtang Zesashvili, designed the dome in collaboration with Italian architect Franc Zagari.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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