Europe 2017: Sanspareil Rock Garden, Germany

We're inwards Deutschland visiting household unit of measurement too are trying to mash inwards every bit many tourist activities possible, conditions permitting. The kickoff twain of days were hot too muggy, amongst trivial relief overnight. Nobody has air conditioning, thence there's no escaping the oppressive stickiness. Fortunately, a serial of rainstorms on nighttime two took the border off, too 24-hour interval 3 was a lot to a greater extent than pleasant, albeit really moisture at times.

Our goal for the 24-hour interval was the Sanspareil Rock Garden near the urban meat of Bayreuth in Northern Bavaria. It's definitely not what you lot mightiness intend when you lot bespeak heed the give-and-take "rock garden." Instead, it's a 35-acre (14 hectare) beech grove which during 1744-1748 was transformed into a woodland fantasy at the behest of Margrave Frederick of Bayreuth and his wife, Margravine Wilhelmina, the rulers of the principality of Bayreuth. As was typical of that age, the ruling nobility had seemingly unlimited funds to build whatever their imagination (or that of their courtroom architects) could dream up.

According to the sign you lot encounter below, the advert Sanspareil "is said to originate from the reaction of a lady of the courtroom inwards 1746 who exclaimed: Ah, c'est sans pareil ! (It has no equal.)"

Margrave Frederick kickoff come upwards upon the enchanted beech grove some xx miles exterior of Bayreuth on a hunting expedition, too he liked it thence much that he had it transformed into a garden. Court architect Joseph Saint-Pierre drew upwards ambitious plans that encompassed both natural features, such every bit the existing stone formations, too man-made structures, some of which were quite exotic:

Aeolus Grotto amongst temple (no longer inwards existence)

In spite of the artifice, 1 master copy tenet was to build inwards harmony amongst nature. Margravine Wilhelmina is quoted every bit maxim that "Nature herself was the architect."

Speaking of Wilhelmina, she was fascinated amongst the life of Telemachus, the boy of Odysseus, who had to overcome many trials too tribulations on his quest to discovery his manful mortal nurture (described inwards the kickoff 4 books of Homer's Odyssey), too she designated rocks too grottoes inwards the wood every bit stations along Telemachus's journey. (From an early on 21st century perspective, the pursuits of the wealthy inwards the 18th century seem frivolous indeed.) In addition, at that spot was an ambitious literary computer programme that included performances inwards the open-air stone theater, which is soundless inwards beingness today.

What did fail, however, were attempts to install ambitious H2O features throughout the forest. When it became clear that the fountains the Margraves considered essential for the success of their woodland fantasy garden would never piece of job reality, they lost involvement inwards the project.

Sanspareil did remain a pop goal for the remainder of the 18th century, but afterward the final Margrave abdicated inwards 1791 too Bayreuth became kickoff a Prussian province too and thence purpose of the Kingdom of Bavaria, Sanspareil savage into oblivion too disrepair.

It wasn't until afterward World War II that restorations began. The original wooden structures are long gone. What remains are the open-air theater, the Oriental Building (the residence of the Margraves), too the Kitchen Building (now a charming café where nosotros had an early on lunch).

Today, the Sanspareil Rock Garden is an airy beech wood inwards the province where everyday worries seem every bit far away every bit the remainder of civilization. We'd experienced torrential downpours on the Autobahn on our agency to Bayreuth, but past times the fourth dimension nosotros got to Sanspareil, the pelting had stopped. Even though at that spot were several cars at the parking lot, nosotros saw nobody else on the paths. The wood was completely quiet, the alone dissonance from the H2O dripping from the trees. Walking through the garden was pure magic--magic I promise I was able to capture inwards my photos.

Road through the Sanspareil beech forest

Do you lot larn the persuasion that it rains hither a lot? In fact, the groundskeeper I met said that on the morning time of our catch it had rained over one-half an inch in exactly a few minutes.

One of many natural stone formations

European beech (Fagus sylvatica)

Split rock

Stone steps upwards to Belvedere Rock where 3 buildings 1 time stood

Steps down

Open-air theatre built to resemble a ruin

This is the best preserved construction at Sanspareil. In fact, it's said to survive fairly unchanged since its construction inwards 1744.

The orchestra pit is behind the depression wall inwards the photograph above. The audience stood (or mayhap sat) beyond inwards the grotto. Since 1985, a Bayreuth theatre society (Studiobühne Bayreuth) has been using this venue for summertime performances.

Grotto off to the side of the stone theatre

Another divide rock

Note the trailing ivy

Propped-up stone amongst out-of-place-looking construction fence

The almost impressive of the split-rock formations at Sanspareil

Now we're at the other terminate of the garden nigh the parking lot. The edifice you lot encounter below is the Morgenländischer Bau (Oriental Building) where the Margraves stayed when visiting Sanspareil.

The interior courtyard was built unopen to this beech. It may non seem especially massive, but it was at that spot when the construction was built inwards 1746-1747.

The original parterre garden was simplified inwards the slowly 1700s too and thence disappeared completely. It was rebuilt inwards its electrical current shape inwards 1987 based on an quondam etching.