Schloss Porcia, Renaissance castle in Spittal an der Drau, Austria.
Schloss Porcia is a Renaissance palazzo-style building with a white rendered facade, a red tiled hipped roof and a cylindrical corner tower. Its long street front is divided into horizontal levels of rectangular windows, with paired arched windows at ground level and a stone-framed doorway with dark wooden double doors. Inside, three-storey arcades with columns surround the courtyard.
Gabriel von Salamanca-Ortenburg, treasurer to Ferdinand I, commissioned the castle from Italian architects from 1533/34; it was finished only in 1597/98, after his death. The Salamanca line died out in 1620, and the Widmann family sold the building in 1662 to the Porcia family from Pordenone, who gave it its name and resided here until 1918. The town of Spittal acquired it in 1951.
The castle now houses the Museum für Volkskultur and hosts the annual Komödienspiele Porcia comedy festival, attracting visitors from across Austria during summer months.
The castle stands in the centre of Spittal an der Drau, its entrance set behind a parking area in front of the white facade. The courtyard, museum and gallery are open to the public since the municipality acquired the building in 1951. The arcaded courtyard hosts the Komödienspiele Porcia in summer and a farmers' market every Thursday.
Every Thursday, a traditional farmers' market takes place in the castle's courtyard, offering local produce and handmade crafts to residents and tourists alike.
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