Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
an ingenious
double staircase
(1499) - the steps diverge and converge as they spiral. Adjoin-
ing it is the
Stadtpark
, the city's largest green space.
Domkirche
(
www.domgraz.at
; Burggasse 3; dawn-dusk; 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 Hauptplatz)
The Domkirche dates from
the 15th century, and became a cathedral in 1786. The interior combines Gothic and
baroque elements, with reticulated vaulting on the ceiling; its highlights are Conrad
Laib's panel painting
Crucifixion in the Throng
(1457) and the faded
Gottesplagenbild
fresco on the cathedral's exterior, which dates from 1485.
The fresco depicts life in the early 1480s, when Graz was besieged by its triple tragedy
of Turks, the plague and locusts.
CHURCH
Mausoleum of Ferdinand II
(Burggasse 2; adult/child €4/2; 10.30am-12.30pm & 1.30-4pm; 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 Hauptplatz)
The
mannerist-baroque Mausoleum of Ferdinand II was designed by Italian architect Gio-
vanni Pietro de Pomis and begun in 1614; after Pomis' death the mausoleum was com-
pleted by Pietro Valnegro, while Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach chipped in with the
exuberant stuccowork and frescoes inside. Ferdinand (1578-1637), his wife and his son
are interred in the crypt.
Another highlight is a red-marble sarcophagus of Ferdinand's parents, Karl II
(1540-90) and Maria of Bavaria (1551-1608). Only Maria occupies the sarcophagus -
Karl II lies in the Benedictine Abbey in Seckau.
MAUSOLEUM
Museum im Palais
MUSEUM
(
www.museum-joanneum.at
;
Sackstrasse 16; adult/child €8/3; 10am-5pm Wed-Sun; 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 Haupt-
platz)
The revamped Museum im Palais is housed inside the Baroque Palais Herberstein,
which has an elegant staircase dating from 1757 and rooms that more than do justice to
the exhibits on the theme of 'status symbols'. This takes in a permanent exhibition of
treasures, including a carriage used by Friedrich III, dating from the mid-15th century,
and special exhibitions.
Stadtpfarrkirche
CHURCH