<P> The Alte Nationalgalerie, together with the Altes Museum, the Neues Museum, the Bode Museum, the Pergamon Museum, the Berlin Cathedral and the Lustgarten, make up the Museum Island complex in Berlin . It is situated in the middle of the island, between the rails of the Berlin Stadtbahn and Bode Street on the eastern banks . </P> <P> It is connected to the Pergamon Museum to the north, and to the Neues Museum, the Altes Museum, and the Berlin Cathedral to the south . The building was designed by Friedrich August Stüler with details by Carl Busse, in an architectural style that is a mix between late Classicism and early Neo-Renaissance, and realised by Heinrich Strack . It was intended to express "the unity of art, nation, and history", and therefore has aspects reminiscent of a church (an apse) and a theatre (the grand staircase) as well as a temple . An equestrian statue of Frederick William IV tops the stairs, and the inside stairs have a frieze by Otto Geyer depicting German history from prehistoric times to the 19th century . The exterior of the building still retains its original appearance, whereas the interior has been renovated many times in order to suit the exhibits . </P>

Alte nationalgalerie (old national gallery) berlin