In 1886, the interior of the old auditorium was splendidly remodelled in the style of historicism.
Since then, a bust of Grand Duke Friedrich of Baden, made by Friedrich Moest, has been placed in the center of the front wall. To the left of the bust is a portrait of Elector Ruprecht I, the founder of Heidelberg University, while to the right of the bust is a portrait of Margrave Karl Friedrich von Baden, who generously supported the university after Heidelberg's annexation to Baden. The University of Heidelberg is called Ruprecht-Karls-Universität (or Ruperto-Carola in Latin) after both personalities. The image above depicts the entry of Pallas Athena, the goddess of wisdom, into Heidelberg, alluding to the founding of the university under Ruprecht I. The importance that Heidelberg University has for Germany as the oldest German university foundation after Prague and Vienna is underlined by the black-white-red flag of the German Empire, which is carried ahead of Pallas Athene.