We had reached the most Northern part of Bavaria with Coburg, famous for its magnificent castle. After wondering through the expansive exhibition we turned South again, which sadly didn't lead to a better weather, so we gave up and explored Bamberg in the rain.
We had found a free parking not far from the Veste Coburg, where we had spent a peaceful night. From there it was a short stroll to the impressive castle, which gave us the advantage of being the first to enter the exhibition in the morning. The precautions concerning Corona are a little bit annoying at times ;-)
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| Veste Coburg |
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| Former draw bridge to enter the castle |
The Coburg Fortress is one of the most well-preserved medieval fortresses of Germany. Today it houses a museum, including a collection of art objects and paintings that belonged to the ducal family of Saxony-Coburg and Gotha, a large collection of arms and armour, significant examples of coaches and sleighs, and important collections of prints, drawings and coins. The many historic rooms and large buildings are a well suited framework for the collections.
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| Lucas Cranach the Elder - Young Woman around 1520 |
Lucas Cranach the Elder was a famous German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving. He was court painter to the Electors of Saxony for most of his career, and is known for his portraits. He had a large workshop and many of his works exist in different versions. His son Lucas Cranach the Younger and others continued to create versions of his father's works for decades after his death. He has been considered the most successful German artist of his time.
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| Surrounding of Cranach - Allegory of Love and Allegory of Faith 1509 |
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| Lucas Cranach the Elder - Sibylle von Cleve, Wife of Elector Johann Friedrich I of Saxony 1535 |
The exhibition contains also a large collection of glass, from the early period until the 20th century, which I found very interesting. There was also a special exhibition on Venetian glass art currently presented.
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| Imperial eagle tankard, greyish glass, coloured enamel painting - 1614 |
We finally reached the armoury with a vast collection of suits of armour and all kind of weapons which were developed over time.
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| Crossbow with stretching device |
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| Coach used for a wedding ceremony in 1540 |
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| "I will not die but live and proclaim the word of the Lord" - Martin Luther |
Martin Luther stayed in 1530 for 6 month at Veste Coburg, working on the translation of the Bible. The Luther chapel and two Luther rooms still remind of the life and work of the reformer.
After leaving Coburg we first did some shopping and found a self service laundry where we could do all our washing in one fell swoop. Afterwards it was still raining non stop and the weather forecast didn't predict any improvement for the next day therefore we decided to stroll into the centre of Bamberg anyway.
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| Reaching the famous Old City Hall of Bamberg |
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| Old City Hall at the river Regnitz |
Legend has it that the Bishop of Bamberg didn't want to give up any of his land to the citizens for the construction of a town hall. Thereupon the cunning citizens pounded stakes into the Regnitz and thus created an artificial island on which they built their town hall. The half-timbered house attached to the bridge tower, the Rottmeisterhäuschen, served as accommodation for the leaders of the guards.
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| Former fishermen houses at the Regnitz |
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| Making of ... |
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| ... the Flower of the Day |
