Die historische Grotte in den Herrenhäuser Gärten

Niki de Saint Phalle Grotte - Historic Shell Grotto in the Herrenhausen Gardens

Useful Information

photography — The park around the grotto. Niki de Saint Phalle Grotte, Germany

Location:	Alte Herrenhäuser Str. 3, 30419 Hannover. Herrenhäuser Gärten, Hannover. A2 exit 12 Hannover Herrenhausen, B6 2 km, turn left on Herrenhäuser Straße. (52.390757, 9.696866)
Open:	NOV to MAR daily 9-16. APR daily 9-18:30 MAI to AUG daily 9-19:30 SEP daily 9-18:30 NOV daily 9-17:30 [2025]
Fee:	Adults EUR 10, Children (0-17) frei, Students EUR 8, Disabled EUR 8. Groups (15+): Adults EUR 8. [2025]
Classification:	Grotto
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed, but copyright restrictions
Accessibility:	yes
Bibliography:
Address:	Hannover Tourismus Service, Ernst-August-Platz 2, 30159 Hannover, Tel: +49-511-12345-111, Fax: +49-511-12345-112. E-mail: Herrenhäuser Gärten Hannover, Tel: +49-511-168-47576. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1676	grotto built.
18th century	shells removed.
2000	renovated for the Expo 2000.
2001-2003	refurbished by Niki de Saint Phalle.
2002	Niki de Saint Phalle died.
28-MAR-2003	inaugurated.

Description

The Herrenhäuser Gärten in Hannover are a famous Baroque garden, just north of Hannover. They were built by the house of Hannover, which has several connections to the monarchy in Great Britain. Today the gardens are open to the public and especially in summer a cultural center of the city, with concerts, theatre and much more.

The grotto was built in 1676 as a classic shell house, walls covered by shells, glass, minerals and crystals. It was a cool place on hot summer days. But in the 18th century the shells were removed and the grotto was used as a storeroom.

It was renovated for the Expo 2000, which was held in Hannover. But this time they just renovated the building, the cave was still empty. Several sponsors (for example, the Allianz Umweltstiftung) made the creation of a modern shell house possible. In the years 2001-2003 the artist Niki de Saint Phalle refurbished the interior of the grotto in her unique style. It was her last big art project as she died in 2002, and the work had to be completed without her, following her plans. The most astonishing thing with this grotto is, that although it was made by a modern artist, and although it is definitely modern art, the result is still comparable to the original shell houses, which still exist all over Europe.

However, there is also a rather ugly aspect to the whole thing. You may have already noticed that our pictures show the garden and the historical decorations of the grotto, but not the modern parts by Niki de Saint Phalle. The reason is simple: massive threats of legal action and massive costs. Any use of the artwork or parts thereof, any reproduction and any exploitation is prohibited without the prior written authorisation of the rights holders. These are the Niki de Saint Phalle Foundation and VG Bild-Kunst. This collides with the concept of showcaves.com, which is completely in the public domain and is available to its visitors free of charge and without advertising. We publish public domain images and if the copyrights of others are asserted, they are not public domain. We also don’t have the budget to pay for licences and don’t see the point in doing so if we have taken the pictures ourselves. Therefore, we have decided with a heavy heart to remove all pictures that even show a shred of Niki. We can’t imagine that this is in the artist’s interest, but we have to bow to the threats.

And finally, one last fly in the ointment: the admission prices have risen massively because there are unfortunately no more tickets for the garden. You have to buy a combined ticket that is valid for the Great Garden, the Herrenhausen Palace Museum and the Berggarten.