If nothing else, the Habsburgs believed in making a grand exit. In 1614, Archduke Ferdinand commissioned his beloved court architect Giovanni Pietro de Pomis to build his Mausoleum and St. Catherine’s Church (both pictured here). But when Ferdinand became Emperor and de Pomis died, the half-finished Mausoleum was left to

Continue readingMausoleum & St. Catherine’s Church, Graz, Austria 1

The golden Mausoleum of Ferdinand II and its church are the brainchild of Giovanni Pietro de Pomis. Muli-talented Italians have a long history of prettifying Graz. A Lombardian by birth, de Pomis was the court artist and favored pet of Ferdinand II. Like Domenico dell’Allio, de Pomis earned his keep as

Continue readingMausoleum & St. Catherine’s Church, Graz, Austria 2