Castelmur Castle (Stampa)

Palazzo Castelmur or Castelmur Castle is a castle in the village of Stampa in the municipality of Bregaglia of the Canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance.[1]

Castelmur Castle
Palazzo Castelmur
Palazzo Castelmur
Location in Switzerland
Castelmur Castle (Stampa) (Switzerland)
General information
TypeMansion
Architectural styleBaroque, Neo-Gothic, Moorish
LocationBregaglia, Switzerland
Coordinates46.3398°N 9.5617°E / 46.3398; 9.5617
Construction started1723
Renovated1850-1855
OwnerMunicipality of Bregaglia

History

The Palazzo was built in 1723 for Johannes Redolfi. Around 1850 Baron Giovanni de Castelmur (1800-1871), a descendant of the Castelmur family from the nearby Castelmur Castle bought the Palazzo as well as the ruins of Castelmur Castle in Bondo. Giovanni was the son of a wealthy Marseille pastry shop owner, who after becoming a successful businessman returned to his family's ancestral village. At the age of 30 he became a property owner in the village,[2] though it is still unclear how he managed to acquire his fortune or title.[3] In 1840 he married his cousin Anna Castelmur (1813-1892) from the nearby village of Vicosoprano.[4]

In 1850 Giovanni and Anna began the expansion and renovation of the old structure. Under the direction of Milanese architect Giovanni Crassi Marliani the exterior was redone in a Moorish inspired Neo-Gothic style.[5] The brick front façade is flanked by two large towers, both the façade and towers crowned with machicolations and corbels. The older parts of the mansion were decorated with paneling and wall paper. The new additions were decorated in the Louis Philippe style with Rococo and Biedermeier elements. The walls are covered with ornate murals and silk wallpaper. Many of the ceilings were covered with trompe l'oeil paintings by Gaspare Tirinanzi[6] and wall paintings by Zaverio Tessera.[5] The Palazzo was surrounded with an English garden and a 2 m (6.6 ft) tall wall.

Both Giovanni and Anna were patrons of the arts and philanthropists who supported many organizations in the region. As the couple never had children, after Anna's death the Palazzo was inherited by other relatives. In 1961 the heirs sold the castle and surrounding lands to the local government of the Circolo di Bregaglia. The local government converted it into a museum. On the second floor is the Archivio Storico, an archive that stores and researches documents relating to the Val Bregaglia region. Additionally on the second floor there is a permanent exhibit dedicated to the history of Graubünden's pastry bakers, a tribute to Giovanni's upbringing.[3]

  • Giovanni de Castelmur
  • Trompe l'oeil illusions on the ceiling
  • The Grand Salon in the Palazzo
  • A room on the ground floor
  • Westside exterior
  • Exterior and surroundings
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See also
  • List of castles in Switzerland

References
  1. "Kantonsliste A-Objekte". KGS Inventar (in German). Federal Office of Civil Protection. 2009. Archived from the original on 28 June 2010. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
  2. Palazzo Castelmur website-Giovanni Castelmur accessed 1 December 2016
  3. Swiss Castles.ch (in German) accessed 1 December 2016
  4. Centro Giacometti - Palazzo Castelmur (in German) accessed 1 December 2016
  5. Palazzo Castelmur Archived 2016-12-02 at the Wayback Machine from Swiss Heritage Archived 2016-12-05 at the Wayback Machine accessed 1 December 2016
  6. Palazzo Castelmur website-Palazzo accessed 1 December 2016
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