The large five-floor tower house from the 13th century was donated to the Thun family, who incorporated it into a new square building, the current Caldes Castle.
The inside is fascinating, with vaulted ceilings, wood panelling and frescoed rooms. Quite remarkable are the count’s room and the ballroom. After climbing the tower’s wooden staircase, you enter a room with frescoes all over the walls, telling ancient stories about the imprisonment of the unfortunate young countess Marianna Elisabetta Thun. Legend has it that the frescoes in the small room, known as Olinda’s prison, are her own work.
The Castle belongs to the Autonomous Province of Trento, that restored it and turned it into a prestigious venue for exhibitions and cultural events.
References:Ogrodzieniec Castle is a ruined medieval castle originally built in the 14th–15th century by the W³odkowie Sulimczycy family. Established in the early 12th century, during the reign of Boles³aw III Wrymouth, the first stronghold was razed by the Tatars in 1241. In the mid-14th century a new gothic castle was built here to accommodate the Sulimczycy family. Surrounded by three high rocks, the castle was well integrated into the area. The defensive walls were built to close the circuit formed by the rocks, and a narrow opening between two of the rocks served as an entrance.
In 1470 the castle and lands were bought by the wealthy Cracovian townsmen, Ibram and Piotr Salomon. Then, Ogrodzieniec became the property of Jan Feliks Rzeszowski, the rector of Przemy¶l and the canon of Cracow. The owners of the castle about that time were also Jan and Andrzej Rzeszowskis, and later Pilecki and Che³miñski families. In 1523 the castle was bought by Jan Boner.