Am. Philosophical Society
The Temple of Night at Schönau; architecture, music, and theater in a late eighteenth-century Viennese garden.
In the late 1700s, Baron Peter von Braun built a grotto and underground temple in the gardens of his estate at Schönau, in honor of the Greco-Roman goddess Night. By examining the ruins of the temple, as well as its design (by Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg), Rice, an independent scholar with a Ph.D. in music history, explores how it is a symbol of Viennese culture during this period. He discusses the construction of the temple in the context of Braun's life, eyewitness accounts and related documents, the temple as a garden, the perception of night in eighteenth century culture, and the temple's relationship to music, freemasonry, theater and opera, and as a Kunstgalerie (a multimedia-like structure). B&W photos and other illustrations are incorporated. The book is aimed at those interested in the history of garden design, architecture, theater, and music. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
