Melissa's Amusings: 2013/Germany 2--Heidelberg's Castle

Heidelberg, known as one of Germany's most romantic cities, has been described in quite a few places as a picturesque setting that could have been in many novels/fairytales, complete with a castle set into the wooded hills overseeing a quaint city along a peaceful river. I would have to agree, and it was a perfect place for Jim and I to celebrate our 32nd anniversary:-)

No sooner than our heads are poking out of the parking garage and I am taking pictures! There are so many images that I see and want to capture :-)

A lot of architectural details on that building!

Glass windows with a 'lacy' look to them set into such a 'solid' structure.

We decide that the castle will be our first destination. Nearby, we find a path that will lead us up to it.

An old looking plaque set into a wall along the path.

Partway up we are starting to get some nice views and interesting structures.

The characteristic red roofs of Heidelberg starting to show.

Looking up towards the castle.

Detailed crest adorned with some greenery :-)

The 'Old Bridge' and on the other side I think I can see the Snake Path as it switchbacks up the steep hill. We did not have time to explore the other side of the river :-(

To me, it is amazing how much artistry and detail goes into these structures/buildings!

If the evil stepmother's mirror in Snow White had a frame....this is what I would imagine it to look like :-)

We haven't even made it to the castle yet, but just these views were worth the hike up! I could imagine myself having a leisurely breakfast and coffee in the 'gazebo/lookout' structure while enjoying....

this view!!

Heidelberg's Altstadt, Church of the Holy Spirit is near the center, Jesuit's Church to the left, Kornmarkt square towards the bottom right, 'Old Bridge', Neckar river and valley

Once we have paid to be in the courtyard of the castle, we are surrounded by Renaissance and Gothic buildings that the different leaders (Counts Palatine/prince electors) had built for their residence.

Besides the courtyard, the admission also includes entrance to the barrel building and the pharmacy museum. Since it had started to drizzle,we chose to see these first, before wandering aimlessly outside around the courtyard and castle grounds.

The Barrel building is known for housing the world's largest wine cask. This cask was built in the late 1500's to hold the wine that was collected as payment for taxes from the Palatinate.

As I am taking these pictures.....

Justin comes and tells me that I am taking pictures of the wrong cask!! Around the corner and sort of in a cellar, I come to this one :-)

This barrel can hold 34,342 gallons and was made from 130 oak trees.

On top of the barrel, a small dancing floor was made.

Keeping watch over the wine, was the jester, Perkeo. He was also known for his drinking, and is represented here by the painted wooden figure holding a wine goblet.

View from near the top of the barrel

The idea of viewing a pharmacy museum did not interest me....but since it was included in the price and was inside part of the castle; decided we could walk through it pretty fast. The Germany Pharmacy Museum was first located in Munich in 1938. Due to WWII and damage some items and the building, it was closed. After the war the surviving pieces/museum was moved to the prince-episcopal residence of Bamberg. In 1958 it was relocated to the Ottheinrich palace in Heidelberg, which is where it is today and represents 2000 years of pharmacy history.
Near the entrance is a 'sample' pharmacy....which impressed me right away.

Obviously, a lot of aesthetics were considered when designing a pharmacy....bottles neatly displayed on shelves, beautiful balance scale, fancy drawers, etc.

Going by the height of the pestle/mortar, they knew it was better to stand while working instead of sitting. This idea is just now getting popular for us and our working on computers!!!

This room also had an intro to the history of pharmacy. The following pictures are some of the items that I liked.

Of course I liked the eye-catching, red colored turtle!!

This room displayed a 19th century pharmacist's shop from the 'Crown Pharmacy' in Ulm.

The owner, Chr. J. Faulhaber, had the furniture made in the "Biedermeier-style". This style was developed from the middle class during 1815-1848. Clean lines, simple, minimal ornamentations, and the use of locally available materials were characteristics for this style.

The furniture was made from cherry wood, which was readily available....unlike mahogany.

Then we came to the area that really grabbed my interest. This area is called 'Medicaments through the ages'. Which sounded a bit boring to me, but once we stepped into this area I was mesmerized by ......

the 28 beautifully displayed show cases of the raw materials used in medicaments from the 17th-21st century.

All of these interesting cases to view in the charming setting of the castle was quite an unexpected delight!!

Just viewing the artwork in each cabinet without reading any of the info was all I had time for.

The medicaments came from three general areas; plants, minerals, and animals.

Two different offices were shown. This one is the Ursuline convent at Klagenfurt (Austria).

Somewhere in all that arabesque decor, the year it was made is in the design....1730.

Quite a different look compared to the Biedermeier style!

Both offices had typical pharmacy vessels on their shelves.

A bit out of focus...but I liked these pharmacy vessels that decorated the Ursuline shelves.

The second office is from the 'Court Pharmacy' at Bamberg.This 18th century office is in the rococo period design, noted for its curving lines and natural shapes.

All those typical 'S' curves for the wooden railing!!

Even though the customers were not allowed into the pharmacist's office/work area, the furnishings and work table were fancy and attractive. The customers had a view into the shop when they were at the window when ordering/picking up their medicine. The preparation tables always had a gold painted balance on it.

This office is quite complete with puffer fish and crocodile/alligator :-)

This room was for herbs ( they were dried, crushed and ground here) and for storage. The large scale in the middle of the room indicates the large amounts of herbs that were being weighed.

The furnishings in this room were from the 'Town Pharmacy' at Mosbach. There is also a big drug grinder in here that is from the 'Lion Pharmacy' at Oppenheim. In 1821 quinine was first industrially produced with it by the pharmacist Friedrich Koch.

Located in one of the castle's towers is the laboratory. The tower was built in the 15th century and is now known as the "Apothecary's Tower". In the center is a model of the type of furnace that was used in pharmacy dispensaries until the 18th century....an athenora.

Many different types of pharmaceutical equipment are displayed here, but what really interested me were all the...

different laboratory glasses, most were for distillation. One of the biggest collections in the world...

so many shapes, sizes and colors!!!

This wall shows some of the different pharmacy symbols; before 1930 each pharmacist made up his own symbol. The symbol was made uniform in 1930. A red 'A' with a poison bowl and snake has been the symbol since 1951.

A wide variety of symbols

The evolution of the many different types of pharmaceutical vessels were on display.

I prefer the un-uniform vessels :-)

The museum was a very pleasant surprise to how much I enjoyed it. If we had the chance to go back, I would want to visit it again, but allow more time for it :-)
We leave the museum and head towards the courtyard.

Red sandstone was used in the building of the castle.

The building of the Ottheinrich building in Heidelberg palace was started by Elector Ottheinrich, who ruled from 1556-1559. His successor, Friedrich III completed the building 10 years later. The roof was once a double-gabled roof, but it along with the top part of the building has been destroyed. Once by the French in 1693 and by lightening in 1764. A roof on the ground floor was added in the 20th century. The figures/sculptures on the facade were made by Alexander Colin, a Flemish sculptor. They symbolize Ottheinrich's virtues for ruling along with his military and political powers. A sculpture at the portal's central gable represents himself. The original sculptures are now being protected from weathering and are kept/displayed inside.

The German Pharmacy Museum is located in the basement of this building.

The different styles of the buildings alongside each other has an 'odd' look to it. (Jim's picture)

The Friedrich building was commissioned by Friedrich IV and in the beginning of the 17th century master builder Johannes Schoch and sculptor, Sebastien Gotz combined their efforts into making this facade. The figures on this facade represent the royal line and leaders of this area. Again, the original sculptures are being protected inside the building. In order to see the inside of these buildings. one needs to be in a tour (which we did not do).