Friedrichsbau
Friedrichsbau forms the palace wing of Heidelberg Castle, rising above Heidelberg’s old town and the Neckar valley. Built between 1601 and 1607, it housed Elector Friedrich IV and his family. The ground floor contains the chapel, while the upper floors held the residential rooms. Neckar valley sandstone gives the building the same warm material as the surrounding castle.
Four levels of ancestor statues cover the facade, including Charlemagne, Ludwig the Bavarian and Friedrich IV himself. Carved lions, coats of arms, gilded figures, hidden faces and mythical creatures fill the stonework. Dormers carry allegorical figures, including the seasons and Lady Justice, while the town-facing rear also bears elaborate carvings. An arched passage leads directly towards the inner courtyard without crossing the chapel.
The Atlan terrace opens towards the Neckar and Heidelberg, with terraced gardens below and a small lookout tower above. The terrace carries a hollow said to show where a fleeing knight landed during a palace fire. Another version links the mark to a secret romance, and visitors sometimes test the hollow with their own foot. From this height, the ruined bell tower, struck by lightning in 1764, stands among the castle’s many historic wings.
- City
- Heidelberg
- Content updated
Image: wikimedia 
Image: Unknown authorUnknown authorPublic domain 
Image: Isidore Laurent DeroyPublic domain 
Image: Conrad Caspar RordorfPublic domain
Take this page with you
The myTuur app is free, and once you are standing at a spot its story starts by itself.
Spots like this one are the stops myTuur strings into tours through Heidelberg. In the app, each story begins where you stand: walk up to a spot and it starts, read it on screen or listen as you go, then follow the route to the next one.
What is myTuur?
myTuur is a free city-guide app. Its tours are built from spots, and each spot carries a story that starts when you get there, to read or to listen to as you like.