The man who built his own cathedral
May 31, 2022 No Comments
For nearly 60 years, a former monk toiled almost single-handedly on an extraordinary building outside Madrid. Is it a folly or a masterpiece?
For nearly 60 years, a former monk toiled almost single-handedly on an extraordinary building outside Madrid. Is it a folly or a masterpiece?
“It is my intention to rebuild the old castle ruin of Hohenschwangau … in the authentic style of the old German knights’ castles.”
That sentence, written by king of Bavaria Ludwig II to his friend and protégé, Richard Wagner, started the incredible architectural project that became Neuschwanstein Castle.
Guests at a new 20-story hotel and cultural center in Skellefteå, a former gold-mining community in northeastern Sweden, don’t have to step outside to feel immersed in the natural world. The floors, ceilings and support beams of the building—which also houses a museum and other facilities—are made almost entirely of spruce and pine harvested from nearby woodlands.
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