These photographs offer a rare and intimate look inside a private Berlin home in the years just after World War II. They were originally owned by Helga Salen, born Helga Borck, the daughter of Werner Borck and Margarete Blume. The collection has been preserved and scanned by Jack Salen, making them accessible for the first time to a wider audience. The house stood at 6 Hermannstraße in Zehlendorf, a leafy residential district in the southwest of Berlin. The photos were taken in 1948 and 1949 — a time when Berlin was divided into occupation zones and much of the city was still in ruins. Zehlendorf, located in the American sector, remained relatively intact, and these images reflect that.
Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
The exterior of the house shows a well-maintained property with solid architecture typical of the prosperous Zehlendorf neighborhood. The structure survived the war years in good condition, a contrast to much of the city at the time.
Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
The garden side of the house was clearly a point of pride. Green space was a defining feature of Zehlendorf homes, and the photographs show a well-kept outdoor area that wraps around the property.
Garden side of Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sGarden side of Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
A terrace connected the interior living spaces to the garden, and a winter garden — a glass-enclosed room designed to bring the outdoors in — added an elegant touch to the home’s layout.
Terrace at Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sWinter garden at Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
Inside, the sitting room was the heart of the home. Furnished with care, it reflected the comfortable middle-class lifestyle the Borck family maintained even in the difficult postwar period.
Sitting room in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sSitting room in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
The fireplace was a central feature of the main living area. Two photographs document it in detail, showing the kind of solid, ornate design common in German bourgeois homes of the era.
Fire place in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sFire place in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
A small street-side room and several interior spaces were also carefully photographed, giving a room-by-room record of the entire house.
Little room (street side), Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sLittle room (street side), Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sInterior of Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sInterior of Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sInterior of Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sInterior of Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
The kitchen was documented in two shots, showing the layout and equipment of a working domestic space in late 1940s Berlin. Practical and functional, it stands in contrast to the more decorative rooms elsewhere in the house.
Kitchen in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sKitchen in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
The bedroom and dressing room were photographed with the same attention to detail. These private spaces reveal how the family organized their personal quarters, with furnishings and fittings that speak to a comfortable, ordered household life.
Bedroom in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sDressing room in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
The bathroom was captured in two photographs, showing the tiled fixtures and design details of a well-equipped domestic bathroom from the period.
Bathroom in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sBathroom in Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
One of the most candid images in the collection shows a dog resting at the foot of the stairs — a small, unguarded moment that brings the house to life in a way that formal room photographs cannot. Views from Helga’s own room look out over the surrounding grounds, framing the neighborhood as it appeared in those two specific years.
Dog at stairs, Helga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sHelga’s Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sView from Helga’s room, Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940sView from Helga’s room, Berlin House, 6 Hermannstraße, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany, 1940s
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