Cabinet from the archive in the Berlin Palace 

The labels on the six drawers suggest that the cabinet was once used for storing seals. It used to be among the furnishings of the Geheimes Staatsarchiv, the secret statearchive which was located in the palace until 1874. As long ago as the mid­fifteenth century, the ruling family stored important records and documents in the palace. For centuries the archive actedas the dynasty and state’s memory. It was one of many authorities, exchequers and chanceries housed in the palace. These in cluded Berlin’s highest court, the Kammergericht, which is still in existence elsewhere in the city.