This ensemble, consisting of a palace and various buildings in the
Italian villa style, nestled in a landscape reminiscent of the
Mediterranean, is based on designs by Schinkel and Persius, as well as
Lenné. The owner of the property, Prince Carl von Preußen, gradually
filled his exceptional country estate with an abundance of artworks. In
1990, the palace and park were declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.
One of the many unique testimonies to "Prussian Arcadia" lies sprawled
out at the point where Potsdam and Berlin meet: nestled in a landscape
of nearly Mediterranean ambience are an Italian villa, a Venetian
monastery courtyard, an Orangery and the "Little Garden of Antiquity".
Above all, it was Prince Carl von Preußen, with his love for Italy and
his almost manic obsession with art collecting, who gave the country
estate, which he acquired in 1824, its characteristic face. After an
unsettled history, repeated inappropriate utilization and remodelling of
many of the buildings, the designs and executions of Karl Friedrich
Schinkel and Ludwig Persius could be reconstructed. The interior of the
palace, with its colourful rooms of varying designs and furnishings, has
proven to be a treasure-trove of museum-quality pieces and décor.
Likewise, the landscape garden, designed by Peter Joseph Lenné in the
English style, is one of the highpoints of the estate.
