The record
The first segment of the Axel Springer distribution to reach a state, unveiled outside the Saarland parliament on 17 June 2009, the former Day of German Unity.
An original segment, 3.60 metres high and 2.7 tonnes, stands outside the Landtag of Saarland. It was unveiled on 17 June 2009, the former Day of German Unity, by the minister-president Peter Müller, the president of the Landtag Hans Ley and Bild's deputy editor-in-chief Alfred Draxler. Saarland was the first state to receive one of the segments Axel Springer AG gave to every federal state for the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Wall — the distribution described on the Stuttgart record. Müller called the Wall a symbol of unfreedom and its overcoming a symbol of people's freedom and self-determination; by putting it outside the Landtag, Saarland too meant to keep the memory of the peaceful revolution alive.
The plaque at its foot carries the wording used across the distribution: the fragment was part of the wall that divided Berlin and Germany, for 28 years the means and purpose of oppression, overcome by the peaceful revolution of 9 November 1989, and its parts are now a symbol of the power of freedom and a warning of its constant danger. It calls the segment a gift from Bild to Saarland for the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Wall on 9 November 2009, in memory of Axel Springer, who held to his dream of German unity against all resistance — though by then it had been standing for five months.
How did it get here?
A gift from Bild (Axel Springer AG) to the state of Saarland, the first of the state segments, unveiled on 17 June 2009.
Sources
Listed by the Berlin Wall Archive as #361.
Denkmal „Berliner Mauer“ — Orte des Erinnerns ↗
On 17 June 2009, the former Day of German Unity, an original segment was set up in front of the Saarland Landtag, Saarland being the first state to receive a segment from Axel Springer AG for the twentieth anniversary; unveiled by Peter Müller, Hans Ley and Alfred Draxler, 2.7 tonnes and 3.60 m high; Müller's words on unfreedom and freedom; the text of the information plaque at its foot, a gift from Bild to Saarland for the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Wall on 9 November 2009 in memory of Axel Springer; location Franz-Josef-Röder-Straße 7.
Institutional sourceSource accessed 2026-09-17
Die Berliner Mauer in Deutschland — Die Berliner Mauer in der Welt ↗
An essay by Tina Schaller and Moritz Reininghaus for the Federal Foundation: on 17 June 2009 Saarbrücken, and so Saarland, became the first state to receive an original segment under the Axel Springer initiative, followed by Stuttgart on 9 November 2009.
Inventory listingSource accessed 2026-09-17
Saarbrücken, SL — The Wall Net ↗
One segment in front of the Landtag building, Saarland being the first state to receive a segment from Axel Springer AG; gives the setting-up as August 2009.
General referenceSource accessed 2026-09-17
Berlin Wall Archive ↗
The source lists this place as a Berlin Wall location. Coordinates, where supplied, are source-reported and may represent a general area. This is not independent verification of authenticity, current presence, or public access.
Inventory listingSource accessed 2026-09-17 · Source record 361
Source-reported segments: 1. This is not a separately verified count.
No photograph of this one has been published. If you have taken one, or know when it arrived or who gave it, we would like to hear. Contribute to this record