5/5 Celeste V. 4 years ago on Google
Elector
Carl
Theodor
von
der
Pfalz
commissioned
his
architect
Nicolas
de
Pigage
to
design
a
new
garden
monument.Pigage
proposed
to
build
the
planned
temple
in
the
form
of
a
romantic
ruin,
as
opposed
to
the
mosque. Construction
began
in
1784
-
the
latest
building
in
Schwetzingen
castle
garden. Like
all
other
buildings,
the
temple
has
a
deeper
meaning:
as
a
temple,
it
is
reminiscent
of
a
grave,
as
a
ruin,
he
reminds
of
the
transience. The
name
"Mercury
Temple"
appears
for
the
first
time
in
1791.
Builder
and
architect
could
not
have
guessed
that
the
decision
to
build
a
ruin
would
raise
a
good
deal
of
questions
a
good
two
hundred
years
later. The
responsible
professionals
had
the
unusual
task
of
deciding
which
components
were
planned
as
ruin
from
the
start
and
which
were
actually
in
poor
condition. Numerous
investigations
on
the
construction
and
archival
research
provided
sufficient
answers. During
the
renovation,
only
those
parts
of
the
stone
were
repaired
or
replaced
that
were
badly
damaged
in
order
to
support
the
statics
and
the
tightness
of
the
structure. Supreme
measure:
as
much
as
possible
of
the
original
substance
of
the
idiosyncratic
construction.
How
could
the
statics
of
the
dome
be
secured? Because
the
dome
is
-
completely
following
the
motive
of
the
ruin
-
not
at
all
as
round
closed,
but
has
a
wanted
break,
an
opening. That
is
why
the
most
important
element
of
the
construction
is
missing:
a
closed
metal
pull
ring
at
the
base
of
the
dome,
which
could
accommodate
the
vaulting. Pigage
had
a
good
solution:
he
inserted
an
open
three-quarter
circle
instead. This
static
refinement
could
now
be
secured
and
stabilized
again.
For
several
years
the
romantic
structure
was
hidden
by
scaffolding. Now
his
long-term
renovation
could
be
completed. For
this,
the
state
of
Baden-Württemberg
has
invested
1.43
million
euros. From
now
on
the
temple
of
Mercury
is
again
available
at
the
guided
tours
of
the
State
Castles
and
Gardens
in
the
castle
garden. It's
worth
it:
the
upper
storey
with
its
window
openings
was
already
built
as
a
belvedere
in
the
18th
century,
as
an
impressive
vantage
point
over
the
large
pond
and
the
famous
garden
mosque.
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