The pink Mosque
Dome, minarets and inscribed Arabic aphorisms โ the eighteenth century's fascination with our civilisation in stone.
Berthold Werner โ CC BY-SA 3.0 ยท Roman Eisele โ CC BY-SA 4.0 ยท Llez โ CC BY-SA 3.0 ยท Llez โ CC BY-SA 3.0
Carl Theodor built it in his 'garden of the world' gathering civilisations' architectures, giving the Islamic station the grandest pavilion: dome, twenty-metre minarets and an arcade of Arabic proverbs in script and translation. Never meant for prayer, it was built in declared respect โ a rare document of Europe's admiring gaze two and a half centuries ago.
Gardens first by a distance: they are the wonder, Mosque included. The interior tour rewards palace lovers, its jewel the original theatre. On limited time: garden ticket, and spend every hour there.
May and June are the peak: fountains on, roses open, the avenues green. Autumn is quiet gold. Winter is architecture alone at lower price โ and the Mosque is lovely even leaf-bare.
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Fifteen minutes from Heidelberg, the summer palace of Schwetzingen opens its real wonder: gardens among the loveliest the eighteenth century left in Europe โ strict French geometry dissolving into English landscape, studded with temples, fountains and princely pleasure pavilions. Its great surprise for our readers: the "Mosque" โ a grand pavilion with pink dome, twin minarets and arcade, built by Prince Carl Theodor around 1795 in admiration of Islamic civilisation, in Europe's age of fascination with the East. Never a prayer mosque but an architectural tribute, its walls carry Arabic aphorisms in fine script with translations โ the largest garden mosque of its kind left in Europe, and a pause before it condenses a century of dialogue and imagination. In summer the gardens flower, the fountains play and the palace interior opens by tour. A perfect half day from Heidelberg by short train and walk.
Dome, minarets and inscribed Arabic aphorisms โ the eighteenth century's fascination with our civilisation in stone.
French water axes playing in summer as designed.
Princely follies scattered in the green โ every path rewarded.
An original 1752 palace theatre still playing its festivals.
Schlossplatz, 68723 Schwetzingen