There are a lot of signs in Graz mentioning the string A.E.I.O.U. Habsburg Emperor Frederick III used these vocals to mark his buildings while staying in Graz. The meaning of this string is still unsolved. [German]
Old curacy in Žalec
At first, I was surprised to see embrasures at this part of the former curacy. Later, I learned the Baroque building was erected on top of the walls of a former defence tower. The fresco above the richly ornamented portal depicts Saint Nicholas, to whom the nearby church is consecrated.
Red Castle in Weimar
On the way from the Duchess Anna Amalia Library to the market, I pass a Renaissance portal with a strikingly large number of coats of arms. The windows have colourful lines like fresh make-up. [German]
Porta principalis dextra in Vienna
This mosaic at a building in Vienna reminds pedestrians of an ancient gate (porta principalis dextra) that stood here in the 1st century. It was part of the Roman fort Vindobona, the nucleus of modern Vienna.
Painted Apiary in Olimje
In the areas of Slovenian Styria (Slovenska Štajerska), Carniola (Kranjska)and the Austrian state of Carinthia (Kärnten), hikers find these traditionally painted bee boards (Panjske končnice). With the help of these paintings, beekeepers identify a particular hive.
Masters’ Houses (1926) in Dessau-Roßlau
After Walter Gropius founded the Staatliche Bauhaus in Weimar, there was no time to mould his new ideas into a building. After his move to Dessau, he appeared as an architect on a site of the Bauhaus School. Here, the four Masters’ Houses form an ensemble. [German]
Karmel Mayerling in Alland
The estate in the Vienna Woods was first mentioned in the 13th century. In 1887, the Austrian Crown Prince Rudolf converted the facility into a hunting lodge (Mayerling Castle). On January 30, 1889, Rudolf and his mistress Baroness Mary Vetsera died here under circumstances that were not completely solved. [German]
Rotenturn Manor in Slovenj Gradec
Rotenturn Manor (Dvorec Rotenturn) stands in the Slovenian city of Slovenj Gradec. It is one of the town’s most important venues for cultural events. [German]
Hall of Liberation in Kelheim
The Hall of Liberation (Befreiungshalle) is a Neoclassical monument on Michelsberg Hill near Kelheim. King Ludwig I of Bavaria commissioned this building to commemorate the victory over Napoleon in the German Campaign of 1813 (Befreiungskriege). [German]
Sundial in Neunkirchen
You find this sundial on the facade of a 16th-century building located at the main square of Neunkirchen. The city is the capital of the district of Neunkirchen in the Austrian state of Lower Austria.
“Beware of the squirrel” in Bük
This sign stands near a wood with a high squirrel population in Bük. It happens to be that the depiction of a squirrel turns into the mascot for children at the nearby Bükfürdő spa. The name of this very special squirrel is Otto.
Employment Office (1929)
Walter Gropius planned this building in the years 1928/29. Its former function as an employment office can still be read by a fading inscription (“Amt für Arbeit”). The building is an impressive example of how to align architecture to a process. [German]