Think! That is what the name DENK-MAL Marpe Lanefesch urges. It is more than just a monument. It is a call to remember a checkered past. Right here, in courtyard 6 of the University of Vienna’s campus, stands a testament to Vienna’s complex history.
The DENK-MAL Marpe Lanefesch is a monument with a name that holds deep meaning. “DENK-MAL” is a play on the German word “Denkmal,” meaning monument. It also serves as a prompt: “denk mal!”, meaning “think!”. “Marpe Lanefesch” is Hebrew. It translates to “healing for the soul.”
Let me tell you about the layers of history intertwined in this place. In 1903, Max Fleischer designed a prayer pavilion for Jewish patients. It stood within the Old General Hospital. This pavilion provided solace. It provided a place for reflection.
However, the winds of change brought darkness. During the November Pogrom in 1938, the National Socialists desecrated the building. This act marked a painful chapter in Vienna’s history. The building was damaged. Its purpose was erased.
The story doesn’t end there. In the 1950s, the pavilion entered a “utilization phase”. It became an electrical transformer station. This conversion destroyed the interior. Modernization efforts in the 1970s further altered its exterior. The prayer house lost its original identity.
Fast forward to 1988. The city of Vienna donated the Old General Hospital to the University of Vienna. The university embraced its cultural and political responsibility. It decided to renovate the former prayer house. They sought to reimagine it as a place of remembrance.
Artist Minna Antova conceived the DENK-MAL Marpe Lanefesch project in 1998. Her vision was to redesign the building as a site of reflection. It would serve the University of Vienna. After years of planning and public hearings, the DENK-MAL Marpe Lanefesch was unveiled in 2005.
The concept behind the Denk-Mahl-Stein Sculpture is multifaceted. The goal was to preserve Max Fleischer’s original construction. Also, it was important to make visible the destruction inflicted during National Socialism and after the war. These marks of wear tell a story. It is a story of trauma and resilience.
As you approach the Denk-Mahl-Stein Sculpture, notice the path. A text detailing the building’s history is etched into its surface. This text appears in German, Hebrew, and English. It includes a braille block. To read it, one must turn toward the construction.
Entering the Denk-Mahl-Stein Sculpture, you will pass through the measurements of Max Fleischer. They are marked on the ground. The destroyed elements of the prayer house such as the roof, porch, and Torah-alcove have been replaced with glass. The transparency of the glass symbolizes defenselessness. It evokes a unique awareness of one’s body.
Inside, you will see fresco paintings in the shape of torn pieces of Torah rolls. They cover the walls. They represent the marginalization. They represent the building’s history as a Jewish prayer house. The colorful segments seem to fly towards heaven and earth.
Look down at the transparent floor. It reveals the building’s construction and deconstruction through different time layers. A letter from the Gestapo detailing the destruction of Viennese synagogues is visible. Also, the plans for converting the building into a transformer room are displayed.
Since 2009, the DENK-MAL Marpe Lanefesch has housed the “Memorial Book for the Victims of National Socialism at the University of Vienna in 1938”. The courtyard surrounding the monument was recently planted with grass in 2021/22.
The Denk-Mahl-Stein Sculpture serves as a reminder. It reminds us that memory must be relived again and again. It encourages reflection on the past. It promotes healing for the soul. It is a place to think.