The Kollauhof was sold in 1812. By then it had been rebuilt to suit the needs of the von Axen family and developed into a social meeting place. Gondolas were used for leisurely strolls on the surrounding canals.
The eldest daughter of Jakob von Axen, Catharina Margaretha (1773 - 1799), died of consumption at the age of just 26 after visiting her sister in Berlin in the summer of 1799. She died on September 13, 1799. She is buried in Berlin's Luisenkirche.
Between Kollaustrasse and Niendorfer Strasse, in a slightly swampy area on Heckenrosenweg, there is an obelisk in memory of the daughter of the von Axen family. This almost eight-meter-high monument stands very close to the French School, on a small path that was completely renovated in 2013. The obelisk was erected in 1800 by Senator von Axen at this spot, Catharina Margaretha's favorite place. Today, two benches invite you to sit and relax.
The obelisk stands on a small pedestal between two ash trees. A kind of belt is attached around the obelisk at eye level. Marble reliefs were probably once attached here, but they have since disappeared. It is suspected that the obelisk was designed by the Berlin sculptor Johann Gottfried Schadow, who also created the quadriga on the Brandenburg Gate. This has not been proven. In any case, the reliefs are not said to have been by Schadow.
A plaque attached to the obelisk is said to have shown a text by the poet Christine Westfalen, with whom Catharina Margaretha was related.
Historically, obelisks were actually only reserved for really important people. With the Enlightenment, an obelisk could also commemorate a "normal person." The obelisk on Heckenrosenweg is one of the first obelisks of its kind.