Hofgarten Veitshoechheim

The Bishops of Wurzburg made an old vegetable garden, contained by high walls, into a convivial rococco garden. It adjoins their summer palace, as a place to enjoy rather than a baroque demonstration of limitless power. Yet the planned enjoyment was of a cerebral nature. Transverse and longitudinal axes, lined with high hedges, divide the space into compartments. A basin with an island fountain, representing Mount Parnassus and a winged horse, occupies the central compartment. Rococco sculpture was used throughout the garden to remind one of the arcadian golden age. Putti play, shepherds stroll, peasants gaze. Some of the original sculpture has gone and some has been replaced by copies. One compartment has a hedged theatre. Another has a grotto. The trelissed pavillions have a matchless elegance. The Hofgarten suffers from being managed as a public park with uncontrolled access and inadequate funding.