Rococo Orangery of Bendeleben (Rokoko-Orangerie with glazed wings)

Johann Jacob von Uckermann, known as "the Second" (1718-1781), acquired the Bendeleben estate in 1763, had the dilapidated manor pulled down and a new palace built. From 1765, with his wife, he turned the Hirschgarten into a 21-hectare landscape park, which the tourist board counts among Germany's first witnesses to the shift from the Baroque to the landscape garden. The orangery was built around 1770, when the Lustgarten, the pleasure garden near the village, was redesigned. The Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen often made the trip from Sondershausen to Bendeleben, a few kilometres away, and plants from his Sondershausen castle still winter there.

After more than a century of neglect, the orangery and the Lustgarten were restored, with support from the Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz according to Wikipedia. The restoration is dated to 1997-2007 by the Arbeitskreis Orangerien, to 1999-2010 by Wikipedia. The west wing has again been used to overwinter exotic potted plants since 2004, the east wing since 2007. The Baroque village was an outlying site of the Bundesgartenschau 2021 in Erfurt, and the Denkmal- und Geschichtsverein "Barockes Bendeleben" offers guided tours to groups.

The building is 78 m long and has three parts: a stone central block and two glazed wings. According to the Arbeitskreis Orangerien its form is unique in Germany and, because of its profile, it ranks among the so-called "swan-neck" orangeries (Schwanenhals-Orangerie). Above the glass front of the wings stand Sonnenfänge, devices that catch the sun; Wikipedia speaks of side greenhouses with "Sonnenfang" roofs. The tourist board describes a singular glazing which, with solar mirrors (Sonnenspiegel), ensured optimal light and climate conditions.

In front of the central block lie an oval sandstone basin with a water jet, then a broad staircase leading down to the Lustgarten, enclosed by an old sandstone wall. The orangery, the fountain, the staircase, the sight line and the path network were recreated from historical reference points.

The glazed wings serve as winter quarters for exotic potted plants: the west wing since 2004, the east wing since 2007. According to the tourist board, plants from the nearby Sondershausen castle are still kept there today. In summer the plants are displayed in the orangery garden and in the park of Sondershausen castle. The east wing, usable for events only in summer, is occupied by plants in winter.

The re-created Lustgarten, 1.6 ha in area, combines lawns and green spaces, a fountain, a staircase and paths laid out from historical reference points.

The orangery stands in the centre of the village, below the church of St. Pankratii and behind a wall. The Lustgarten is listed as open daily, and the castle park, 21 hectares with seven ponds frequented by many birds, can be entered at any time. The central block of the orangery is hired out for events of 50 to 60 people; the orangery also opens for the Tag des offenen Denkmals, with a guided tour, and for the Orangeriefest and the Christmas market. The association "Barockes Bendeleben" leads groups, on registration, through the park, the orangery and other monuments in the village.

A visit combines with the GeoPfad Barockdorf Bendeleben, which runs through the village, and with the Wippertunnel, which can be walked daily. The village lies on the L1034 between Bad Frankenhausen and Sondershausen.