Fiholm Castle, Renaissance castle in Eskilstuna Municipality, Sweden
Fiholm Castle is a former säteri estate by Sörfjärden inlet of Lake Mälaren in Jäders socken, Eskilstuna Municipality. Of Axel Oxenstierna's planned palace, only two one-storey wings were built in the 1640s to designs by Simon de la Vallée. The wings are pink-rendered brick ranges under hipped gable roofs, each twenty window bays long, with sandstone portals carved by Heinrich Blume.
A powerful Swedish statesman ordered construction of the castle in 1640, and a renowned architect oversaw its completion by 1642. The project reflected a period when wealthy Swedish nobles were adopting European architectural styles for their country estates.
The wings' sandstone portals carry the coats of arms of the Oxenstierna and Bååt families, carved by the Stockholm master Heinrich Blume, along with ornament around the frontispiece and dormers. Three avenues approach the buildings from south, west and east, a layout the high nobility used to mark its standing. The estate church at Jäder, built at the same time, holds the Oxenstierna burial church.
Fiholm is a private estate about 13.5 km northeast of Eskilstuna, near Sörfjärden in Jäders socken; the wings can be viewed by prior agreement with the owners. Three avenues approach the buildings from the south, west and east. The stone barn from 1864 with its stepped gable is used for events and markets.
The two existing wings were meant to be part of a much larger manor house that was never completed, creating an unusual balanced appearance. This unfinished design is a surprising reminder of the original scale and ambition that never came to fruition.
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