Anhalt ) Who We Are and What We Do …

SIMONET TI HAUS COSW IG (ANHALT ) WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE DO …

Project- and Guesthouse Stucco Palace Historic Dance Hall

Contact: Simonetti Haus Coswig (Anhalt) e.V. phone: +49 34903 499223 Zerbster Str. 40 fax: +49 34903 499492 06869 Coswig (Anhalt) email: [email protected] Germany website: www.simonettihaus.de

Executive board: Donation accounts: Claudia Herrmann IBAN: DE94 8009 3574 0005 0983 94 BIC: GENODEF1DS1 Volksbank Dessau-Anh. eG Cornelia Killian-Bode IBAN: DE46 8055 0101 3000 0068 76 BIC: NOLADE21WBL Sparkasse Wittenberg Volker Riedel IBAN: DE66 8607 0000 0668 2900 01 BIC: DEUTDE8LXXX Deutsche Bank Wittenberg

WHO WE ARE

The SIMONETTI HAUS COSWIG (ANHALT) is an ensemble of three historic buildings which were supposed to be demolished in 2007. Supported by the Land of Saxony-Anhalt, Lotto Toto Saxony- Anhalt, town administration of Coswig (Anhalt), German Foundation for Monument Protection (Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz), LEADER and other organisations we bought the property and saved the buildings from demolition and deterioration. Since then we’ve been working on reconstruction, renovation and utilization of the buildings step by step.

The SIMONETTI HAUS COSWIG (ANHALT) E.V. is a Registered Association for Historic Preservation, Arts and Culture in Coswig (Anhalt). About 35 members are voluntarily working on our projects, many more supporting us through monetary or material donations, visiting our houses and events or following our progress from afar.

WHAT WE DO

To realise our goals and visions we offer guided tours through main house and historic hall, organise cultural events, exhibitions, lectures and readings. School kids are taught traditional crafts, half- timbered and loam construction, lime mortar, stucco works, paintings and more. Groups may arrange a coffee break after the tour or rent the hall for family celebrations or company parties.

All activities help us to preserve the buildings and to generate the financial resources for building projects and running costs.

All activities are realised through voluntary work incl. management and direction. Part-time employees supported by the Jobcenter Wittenberg or other befriended organisations help us to organise the events and to ensure the opening times.

WHAT DO WE WANT TO ACHIEVE?

We’re going to establish a cultural and exhibition centre for the residents of Coswig and guests from far and near. The main house will involve a café, a museum shop and an exhibition of historical stucco decorations including life and works of Giovanni Simonetti(1), the genius creator of our stucco ceilings. A section of the museum will display some impressions of alchemical lore because the owner of the house in 1699, Baron Friedrich von Meder, was an alchemist and would-be goldmaker. We will continue to use the historic dance hall for events, however, the galleries, escape and emergency routes and visitors’ toilets will be finished. The final capacity will be about 200 guests. The Project- and Guesthouse is almost finished with two vacation and guest apartments and various rooms for volunteering projects. The ground floor of all buildings will be accessible barrier-free; in the main house and historic dance hall, the upper floor too.

THE MAIN HOUSE

It’s impossible to describe the famous stucco works in the main house. Not only because it’s diffi- cult to find the right words, but also because they are uniquely fascinating! Come and see yourself! Themes of Greek mythology are sculpturally and figuratively presented: “Apollon the Dragonslayer”, “Perseus saving Andromeda from the Seamonster”, “Hermes killing the giant Argos”, “Four Seasons”, “Room of Acanthus” or the chubby little boys (cherubs) piling the drapes! Surely some of the most beautiful stucco ceilings in Central Germany and beyond!

(1) Giovanni Simonetti (b 1652 Roveredo, Grisons, Switzerland, d 1716 Berlin), one of the most important builders and stucco plasterers of the Baroque Period in Central Germany, he cooperated with Andreas Schlüter at the Berlin Baroque Palace, also worked in Zerbst (Baroque Palace), Leipzig (Alte Börse), Wroclaw (Poland), Frankfurt/O. and other locations.