occasion expressed on behalf of the Munich art world, “the gratitude and praise of the present time and times to come—Bavaria’s bronze oak leaf wreath belongs especially to King Ludwig, patron of the arts” (translation) The Hall of Fame had not been completed at the time of the Bavaria statue unveiling; scaffolding and wooden roofing obscured large portions of the building. Only in 1853 could it be dedicated as part of a far more modest celebration. The Bavaria ensemble during the Drittem Reich The Nazis had an ambivalent and cynical relationship to the Hall of Fame and the Bavaria statue. On the one hand, the various plans they developed to redesign the fairgrounds on the Theresienwiese including the Bavaria and the Hall of Fame betrayed a total lack of respect for the location and the intention of their founders. For example, in 1934 they considered demolishing the Hall of Fame behind the Bavaria statue to make space for exhibition grounds, and the Theresienwiese was to be fragmented by avenues for large parades. In 1935 another plan was presented to eliminate the Bavaria statue as well, and in its place to erect a huge congress hall with a memorial for heroes. According to plans from 1938, the Bavaria and Hall of Fame were to be retained, but framed by enormous monumental buildings. The Theresienwiese was to be modified. On the other hand, the open space of the Theresienwiese and the existing imposing and symbolic architecture were readily used for propagandistic staging, for example for the mass events connected with the pompous May Day celebrations which took place until the outbreak of World War II, as is evident in accounts written by the tightly controlled press. Renovation An investigation of the Bavaria'' statue by experts revealed such serious damage that the statue had to be closed to visitors in 2001. In all, over 30 separate flaws were detected. In the course of the renovation work which was immediately initiated and cost some one million euro, the raised arm was stabilized and the entire outside surface was cleaned, polished and sealed. A completely new inner circular stairway was built. In order to help finance the renovation work, replicas in various scales were made based on the one model which had been produced by Schwanthaler, the tip of the small finger, including one that could be used as a drinking vessel, as well as