Imagebroschüre_en_2023

New Philosophies –
New Designs
»The spirit of the Renaissance came to Saxony in my time, in the 16th century. The dark Middle
Ages gave way to the dawn of discoveries and new knowledge. We princes promoted the arts and
sciences and tended to the development of trade and crafts. We were not willing to live in the
cramped, uncomfortable castles built by our forefathers.
We therefore had the residential castles in Torgau and Dresden remodeled. With their richly
decorated facades, long rows of windows, artistic spiral stones, new castle chapels and representative
room arrangements, they aroused admiration throughout Europe. By the way, I also achieved
the latter with my chamber of art and natural objects.
Here, I collected precious and rare items from all over the world – from unicorns and mineral
specimens to precious stones and paintings – and presented them to my astonished guests.
Many of my successors were also avid collectors, some even more so than me. I was also responsible
for the conversion of the old castles in Freiberg, Nossen and Colditz. They became castles with
magnificently decorated portals, wide stepped gables and large halls. To defend the cities, modern
fortifications in the Italian and Dutch style were built in Dresden and Leipzig with cannon-armed
bastions and secure casemates. Koenigstein in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains was expanded into
an impregnable national fortress. And in Augustusburg Castle in the Ore Mountains, I created a
truly imposing edifice«.
Augustus, Elector of Saxony (1526 – 1586)
»ART
HOARDER«
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