1962 · Window jumps · The Spree between Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain
A man works his way along the Flutgraben border building and jumps to the West
In 1962 a man worked his way along the ornamental brickwork of the VEB OLW workshop building on the Flutgraben and jumped across the border into West Berlin. The protruding brick courses were then knocked off.
The workshop building of VEB OLW on the Flutgraben, where the channel meets the Spree, was itself part of the border: according to the Landesdenkmalamt Berlin there was no border strip and no wall in front of it, and the building's wall facing the Flutgraben formed the border with West Berlin. It remained a workshop, and border soldiers patrolled inside the building and on its roof.
According to the Landesdenkmalamt, in 1962 a man worked his way along the building to the Flutgraben on five protruding courses of ornamental brickwork between the ground and first floors, above the entrance area, and jumped across the border into the West. In response the protruding bricks were knocked off to secure the building further. The marks were kept when the facade was renovated in the 1990s.
Sources
- Am Flutgraben – Ein Werkstattgebäude wird zum GrenzhausLandesdenkmalamt Berlin (berlin.de)
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