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The FABER-CASTELL CASTLE IN STEIN NEAR NURENBERG In 1903, Alexander Graf von Rüdenhausen and Ottilie von Faber began with the construction of the so-called "Neue Schloss" (New Castle). Graf Alexander wanted a representative, generous property appropriate to both his own history-steeped origins and to the high social ranking occupied by the young aristocratic family. The new building was constructed as an extension to the existing so-called "Alte Schloss" (Old Castle) built by Lothar von Faber between 1843 and 1846. On 5th December 1903, the foundation stone was ceremoniously laid for the Neue Schloss, which was already completed in 1906. It is no coincidence that the almost medieval façade with romanticised arches and pillars, timber-frame elements, round and corner towers etc. reminds one of the forms of Bavaria’s renowned Schloss Neuschwanstein – the same "romantic" notion of past knights is reflected here too. However, the interiors are different. In an impressive and versatile manner, the styles switch from the Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance epochs, through Empire and Classicism to what was then ultra-modern – the Art Nouveau.
The finest example at Schloss Faber-Castell is the main staircase. Here are colours, shapes and materials working together in perfect harmony. The impressive room height is finally counterbalanced by a partly gilded stucco ceiling, crowning the fine room composition with its elegant and clear forms. The second storey, the floor reserved exclusively for social occasions, is dominated by festive elegance. This was where the nobility celebrated; even the successor of Bavaria’s fairytale king, Prince Regent Luitpold, was among the guests of the Count and Countess.
More than one thousand architect’s drawings for the castle, most of them for the interior design, are still preserved today. They demonstrate the high artistic quality and care with which the design of Schloss Faber-Castell was thought through and executed down to the last detail. Only artists and workshops of the highest quality were entrusted with this task.
And finally, the layout of the some 75-acre (30 hectares) ‘Schlosspark’ was no less elaborate. The grounds comprised, for example, a large lake with a boathouse, bridges, a skittle-alley, a spiral tree maze, fountains and a "Swiss Chalet" where billiards was played.
The castle today
Shortly before the beginning of the Second World War, on 1st May 1939, the Count’s family retired as always to their summer seat outside Nuremberg. Soon afterwards, the castle was seized by the German army. It survived the war years without major damage and, from 1945, was first used as quarters for allied troops. Later, during the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials, it served as accommodation for international lawyers and courtroom reporters, among them Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck. The last US occupying forces only left the castle in 1953, it having finally served as a press camp.
The Count’s family never moved back in. The unique and imposing building spent over 30 years in a ‘Snow White’ sleep until Anton Wolfgang Graf von Faber-Castell ‘re-awoke’ his family’s ancestral home and opened it to the public for the first time on the occasion of the company’s 225th anniversary in 1986. Since then it has been regularly used for exhibitions and increasingly for company events. |
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The "Lemon Room". Furniture made of lemon wood. |
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