Biography

Gerhard Rudolf Meyer studied Oriental Studies, Archaeology, and Assyriology at the Universities of Rostock, Greifswald, and Berlin. In the early 1930s, he succeeded Adam Falkenstein as an Assyriologist, working alongside Anton Moortgat at the Max Freiherr von Oppenheim Foundation, which oversaw the Tell Halaf Museum and an Oriental Research Institute founded by Max von Oppenheim. Later, he transferred to the Near Eastern Department of the Berlin Museums at the Pergamon Museum. During World War II, Meyer served as a soldier in North Africa and was initially taken prisoner by the Americans and later by the Soviets. While a prisoner of war, he pursued further studies in linguistics. After his release, he returned to the Near Eastern Collection in Berlin.

From 1951, Meyer succeeded Walter Andrae, the excavator of the Assur, as director of the Museum of the Ancient Near East on Berlin's Museum Island, one of the most important collections of its kind outside of the Near East. He held this position until his death. From 1958 until his resignation from this position in 1976, he also served as Director General of the East Berlin State Museums, succeeding Ludwig Justi. From 1961 until his death, he taught as a professor at Humboldt University in Berlin, alongside his museum work. Between 1963 and 1977, Meyer was also active in cultural politics, initially representing the NDPD (National Democratic Party of Germany) for one term, and subsequently the Cultural Association three times in the East German People's Chamber (Volkskammer), the sham parliament of East Germany.

Meyer made significant contributions to the reconstruction of the museums on Berlin's Museum Island, which had been destroyed in World War II. His physical presence during this time earned him the nickname "The Builder," a reference to ancient Near Eastern rulers. As a cosmopolitan individual, he cultivated diverse international contacts within the limited possibilities of the dictatorship. He was considered an expert on the ancient state of Urartu and was active as an excavator, particularly in Babylon, where he was responsible for excavations at the Tower of Babel. On his 60th birthday, he was made an honorary citizen of his birthplace, Crimmitschau. He died unexpectedly in 1977 at the age of 69.
- IMDb mini biography by: Marcus Cyron