II. - Schloss Schwetzingen

III.
160
Fig. 4: Postcard, c.1892
(original: Schlossbibliothek
Schwetzingen).
III. Schwetzingen – Historical Context
bit, having seen the inscriptions on the walls
of the minaret staircase: “It goes without saying
that names are scrawled everywhere; I
would not like to add my own to such a vulgar
neighbourhood.“ 23 However, the details
of most eminent visitors’ stays can be found
in the visitors’ book of the Schwetzingen bathhouse,
that was kept from 1793. 24 August
von Platen wrote: “In one of the rooms there
was a book for the use of visitors, and despite
the fact that I have been ranting against the
scrawling of names on walls just now, I nevertheless
entered my name in that book, because
I consider this an excellent custom and because
I myself have been delighted to discover
the name of a friend in such a place, something
that happens quite frequently.“ 25 Platen’s
own entry in the visitors’ book was a succinct
Graf Platen=Hallermund, Lieutnant in bayrischen
Diensten (“Count Platen-Hallermund,
Lieutenant in the service of Bavaria”). 26 Other
names in there are that of the Romantic writer,
Caroline Günderode, who with her siblings
went for a walk in the grounds on 21st July
1804, and of Goethe’s muse “Suleika”: Marianne
Willemer von Franckfurt am 25 May 1808. 27
23 Hufschmied 1909, p. 56.
24 Bathhouse visitors’ books from 1793 to 1810: GLA Karlsruhe,
65/200 21 ff.
25 Cp. Hufschmied 1909, p. 56.
26 Visitors’ books GLA Karlsruhe, 65/20023.
27 Visitors’ books GLA Karlsruhe 65/ 200 21/22.
The visitors’ books refl ected the “rapt enthusiasm
and admiration felt by many a visitor”. 28
Images of Schwetzingen
Long before the fi rst detailed description of
the Schwetzingen garden appeared in print,
the fi rst known pictorial representation of it
had been published by the Baden court painter,
Karl Kunz. In the 1790s, he produced six
views of the most beautiful parts of the garden
in the aquatint technique developed by
Jean-Baptiste Leprince in 1765-1768 [kurze
Liste mit den Bildmotiven, die ja bis in die
heutige Zeit als Serie stehen]. The artist was
mainly interested in the buildings in their respective
surroundings; fi gures of admiring visitors
enliven the pictures. Aquatint plates
were considered especially delicate, and the
number of high-quality prints was very limited.
Nevertheless, the prints appear to have
sold quickly. At the beginning of the 19th
century, Garden Director Zeyher had made
changes to some buildings, and so Kunz decided
to produce a new series of copperplates. A
large number of engravers in copper and steel
followed his example; in the early 19th century,
a series of garden views and plans were published
in large editions. Notable among them
are the steel engravings of Anton Rottmann
(1795-1840) of Heidelberg and the prints of
Louis Hoffmeister and Georg Michael Kunz
(1815-1883); they appeared as illustrations in
many guidebooks, and a collection of them
was published under the title Vues lythographiées
de Schwetzingen. 29 Towards the end of
the 19th century, the fourth edition of Franz
Schwab’s guidebook, Führer durch die Anlagen
und Erklärer der Kunstwerke im Schlossgarten,
still informs its readers that “all views of the
palace gardens, created by the best artists both
as excellent engravings and masterly photographs,
are available at the palace gates in a
variety of sizes.“ 30
These views of the Schwetzingen gardens,
published in their hundreds, helped consi-
28 Schwarz 1894, p. 34.
29 Charles de Graimberg (ed.), Vues lythographiées de Schwetzingen,
Heidelberg n.d.
30 Schwab n.d., p. 10.