A Tour Of The Fabulous Eggenberg Castle
Eggenberg Castle is one of the best palaces you can visit in Austria. Located in the Eggenberg district of Graz, it was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its impressive architecture, elegant gardens and the important collection of works of art inside. It is a fairytale place that you will never forget. Will you accompany us to meet him?
The history of castle Eggenberg
The origin of this castle is in the XV century. It is then that Balthasar Eggenberg buys this property to turn it into his family residence. This was a wealthy figure in Austrian society closely linked to Emperor Frederick III of Germany. With refined tastes, he began to build his residence in the Gothic style. A space that today is part of the current palace.
But it will be their descendants who magnify the castle and give it its current configuration. Thus, in 1625 Prince Hans Ulrich von Eggenberg, great-grandson of the forerunner of this property, made extensions around the first architectural nucleus.
What to see at Eggenberg castle
The current Eggenberg castle has a square plan and is made up of three courtyards around which huge wings develop. It has a chapel, a church, an immense garden and is home to several museums.
1. The Gothic chapel, the origin of the castle
It is a chapel built before 1470 under the advocacy of the Virgin Mary. Above it stands a majestic tower. Its ribbed vault creating compositions of stars and the Gothic altarpiece, called the Eggenberg altar, stand out.
This altarpiece dedicated to Maria has two movable bodies to be able to open and close the whole set as a window. It also represents one of the best painting samples in all of Austria, a fact that shows the high position of its patron.
In it, you can see Maria surrounded by musical angels and flanked by Saint Fabian and Sebastian. The martyrs Dorothea, Margaretha, Katharina and Barbara also appear, all of them belonging to the royal court of Mary in Heaven. As well as the twelve apostles.
2. The baroque palace
Around the chapel, Prince Hans built his palace. He commissioned the architect Pietro de Pomis to create a building that would represent the perfect world. Thus, Castle Eggenberg was conformed to the image of the universe. With harmonic proportions based on mathematics, the objective was to create orderly spaces in contrast to the chaotic political moment that was being lived.
Therefore, the corners are oriented to the four cardinal points. Thus, the sun walks over the entire building as if it were an immense sundial. Each of the facades corresponds to morning, noon, afternoon and night.
And in plants there is also a hierarchical order. In this way, daily life was developed on the ground floor, private life on the second, and ideas on the upper floor. Meanwhile, the center of the universe is the chapel, and the cave under it represents alchemy, a knowledge very fashionable at the time.
It has 365 windows, as many as there are days in the year. And each floor has 31 rooms that correspond to the number of days that the longest months have. We can also find 24 hours a day and 60 seconds of a minute, all through architectural elements.
The various rooms have the Numismatic Museum, the Archaeological Museum and the Art Museum. In the latter you can see some of the best examples of Austrian Renaissance and Baroque art.
3. The Eggenberg Castle Gardens
The origins of the Eggenberg castle gardens date back to the 17th century. And, although transformed, today it is one of the most important natural parks in the country. It has an impressive area dedicated to rose bushes, an orchard, pavilions and the Planeinet. A garden dedicated to the planetary system.
Visiting the castle and gardens is possible every day of the year. It is a wonderful castle that has the possibility of taking guided tours.
