Guided tours of the information center for heavy load bodies

In 1941, a technical structure was erected to test the load-bearing capacity of the subsoil for a monumental building on the north-south axis. This 7 km long and 120 m wide boulevard was to end with an enormous triumphal arch, which would have blown up any structural dimensions of Berlin.

The so-called heavy load body, a cylindrical pressure body made of solid concrete, has a diameter of 21 meters. It reaches 14 meters in height and 18 meters in depth. French forced laborers toiled for its construction, but the north-south axis was never realized. What remains - as a reminder - is the twelve-thousand-ton load body.


After the Second World War, plans to demolish the concrete colossus were rejected. It was too close to the residential area. The German Society for Soil Mechanics carried out measurement tests there. After the scientists withdrew in 1983, the unused area became overgrown. In 1995, the building was added to Berlin's list of monuments - as the only tangible evidence of National Socialist urban planning.


Since 2002, the Tempelhof-Schöneberg district has been the owner. The information site allows the public to experience the history of the building. From the viewing platform, the urban planning dimensions of the plans at the time can be seen.


Public tours during the season from April to October 2025 every first Sunday of the month starting April 6 at 3 p.m. - free of charge and without registration.


(IN GERMAN)


Very close to the heavy-duty body is the Papestrasse SA Prison Memorial. Free guided tours are also offered there every first Sunday of the month at 1 p.m.