The opera house, built as a box theater between 1745-1748, is one of the most beautiful baroque theaters in Europe with its splendid interior design by Guiseppe and Carlo Bibiena.
Opera house in Bayreuth: facts
| Official title: | Margravial Opera House Bayreuth |
| Cultural monument: | Impressive baroque opera house built between 1745 and 1748, commissioned by the margrave couple Friedrich and Wilhelmine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, a sister of Frederick the Great; richly decorated, wooden arcade preserved in its original form; comprehensive box system with illusionistically painted canvases for a ceremonial architectural representation; baroque sandstone facade and original, 25 m wide roof structure |
| Continent: | Europe |
| Country: | Germany; see more on aristmarketing |
| Location: | Bayreuth, Franconia |
| Appointment: | 2012 |
| Meaning: | Masterpiece and unique monument of baroque theater architecture and culture; important architectural evidence of absolutist society in the 18th century; outstanding place for an authentic cultural, acoustic experience of the baroque |
Six monumental brick churches – three in Stralsund and three in Wismar – serve as representative examples of Gothic sacred architecture in the (Wendish) Hanseatic cities run by Lübeck. This includes the Nikolaikirche (built between 1270-1350) in Stralsund, the oldest sacred building in the city. In its interior, the painted vaults and arcade zones in the nave and choir (14th / 15th century) are particularly worth seeing. A tour of the vaults of St. Mary’s Church (around 1380), during which the 336 steps of its west tower are climbed, offers a wonderful view over the roofs of the old town. The youngest of the brick churches is the late Gothic Georgenkirche in Wismar: its west tower remained unfinished and is therefore a testament to the decline of the Hanseatic cities in the late 15th century.
In addition to these impressive churches, some secular buildings also make the cities of Stralsund and Wismar so unique. The medieval town hall of Stralsund has a special place here. The four-wing system dates from the 14th century and is in front of the west facade of the Nikolaikirche. The city’s landmark, the monumental north facade of which was completed around 1350, subsequently became the model for many other town halls in the Baltic region.
The decline of the Hanseatic League in the course of the 15th century meant that Stralsund and Wismar lost their wealth and influence. During the Renaissance, only a few new buildings were built in Stralsund, including the double-gabled house at Badenstrasse 44, which is well worth seeing. In Wismar, the famous Fürstenhof and the so-called Schabbelhaus on the Schweinsbrücke complement the medieval townscape.
After the end of the Thirty Years’ War, the Peace of Westphalia granted the cities of Stralsund and Wismar to the Kingdom of Sweden, and so the two Hanseatic cities were under Swedish rule for over 150 years. This, too, has left its mark on the cityscape, which is still impressively revealed to the visitor today: The great power from the far north has, among other things, some outstanding baroque buildings such as the armory in Wismar or the commandant’s office (1746) and the Swedish palace (1726–1730) We owe the former Swedish government building on Badenstrasse in Stralsund.
The stone bridge rises 15 meters above the floods of the Danube, which is a total of 308 meters (originally 336 m) and connects the old town of Regensburg with the Stadtamhof district. How difficult the construction of the monumental stone arch bridge must have been between 1135 and 1146 is hard to imagine today. For centuries it was the only permanent Danube crossing between Ulm and Vienna. The people of Regensburg benefited greatly from this, as they were now able to direct almost all of the trade to the north through their city. The Stone Bridge did not only benefit the city’s wealth, it also served as a model for many other large stone bridges in the 12th and 13th centuries, for example in Dresden, London and Prague. In the decades and centuries that followed, the bridge was repeatedly built on. So three bridge towers were added, of which only the bridge gate tower from around 1300 remains today. Heraldic stones, relief panels and stone sculptures were also attached – the few surviving originals can now be viewed in the city’s historical museum. And the Stone Bridge has something else to offer: From the point of view of the bridge man you have the most beautiful view of Regensburg’s old town.
The crowning glory of Regensburg’s old town is the cathedral, which adjoins the Alte Kornmarkt to the west and is the only example of French cathedral Gothic east of the Rhine. Regensburg had been the seat of a bishopric since 739, but construction of the cathedral did not begin until the second half of the 13th century. The monumental structure was completed in 1525, and between 1859 and 1869 the Bavarian King Ludwig I had the two 105-meter-high towers added. The colorful glass windows and the Annunciation group of the Erminold Master (around 1280) are worth seeing in St. Peter’s Cathedral. Music lovers can also listen to the Regensburger Domspatzen (Regensburger Domspatzen) every Sunday during mass at 10 a.m. – a boys’ choir that has existed since 975.
