The Ullsteinhaus on Mariendorfer Damm is Berlin’s forgotten giant. Built between 1925 and 1927 as a European printing center, the complex now brings together tech startups, creative agencies, and other organizations under one roof.
South of Tempelhofer Feld, you’ll find this incredibly beautiful building. Why not stop by Ballet of Lights on your way home—it’s just around the corner!
The Ullsteinhaus in Berlin-Tempelhof: A Record-Breaker Made of Red Clinker
The strikingbrick Expressionist architecture immediatelycatches the eye. The austere, vertical lines and massive pillars make the building look like the set of a dark film noir.
For over 30 years, the 77-meter-tall tower was the tallest skyscraper in all of Germany. And where bright minds are now tinkering with the technology of the future, gigantic printing presses once clattered away, churning out thousands of newspapers.
A Logistics Marvel by the Water
It’s no coincidence that this colossus stands on the banks of the Teltow Canal. In the 1920s, Ullstein Publishing was the largest media company in Europe. Newspapers like the Berliner Morgenpost had daily circulations of up to 600,000 copies.
This required enormous quantities of paper. It was delivered by ship via the canal, processed, and distributed by a fleet of trucks. To ensure the building could even support the enormous weight of the web presses, architect Eugen Schmohl designed what was then Germany’s largest steel-frame structure .
The Owl as a Proud Symbol
Above the former workers’ entrance sits the historic landmark of the Ullstein publishing house: an owl. Sculptor Fritz Klimsch created it in bronze in 1926. The tower clock, with its enormous, gold-colored dials (7.20 meters in diameter!), is also worth a special look up!
A Dark Chapter and a New Beginning
The Jewish Ullstein family had built the publishing house into an empire. But after the Nazis seized power, the family was forced to sell their life’s work far below market value as part of the so-called “Aryanization” in 1934.
The building fell into the hands of Nazi propaganda. It wasn’t until 1952, after World War II, that the Ullstein family regained ownership as part of the restitution process, before the publishing house was sold to Axel Springer in 1959.
Today, “The Drivery”—a campus where developers work on new technologies—has made its home within these historic walls. And so the circle is complete: where yesterday’s news was once printed, ideas for tomorrow are now being developed.
📍 Ullsteinhaus, Mariendorfer Damm 1-3, 12099 Berlin (Tempelhof)
📆 Accessible from the outside at any time
⏳ Approx. 30 minutes
💵 Admiring the architecture from the outside is free
