Sommerfeldsches Castle

The origin of the castle was the Burg Großvargula, which was built by the Schenken von Vargula (ministerials of the Landgraves of Thuringia). In 1178, Rudolf von Vargula is known. He was cup-bearer to the Landgrave of Thuringia. The place was already mentioned in 785. The castle was first documented in 1281.

The former grounds were flanked by four round corner towers; as late as 1856, the drawbridge was still attached to the castle. The dominant structure was a mighty residential tower (Kemenate) from the 15th century, which the city of Erfurt erected. It was 19 meters long, 9 meters wide, and had 4-meter thick walls at a height of 12 meters. This was followed by a parapet with a hip roof and light slits with few small windows. The pointed-arch access gate was on the lowest floor; the other floors were accessible via a staircase within the wall. This residential tower was demolished in 1861.

In 1725, the Sommerfeld Castle, a simple building complex with an administrative building, a Baroque building with a central risalit, was built on the castle grounds. Only the gatehouse with a pointed-arch barrel vault in the passage is of medieval origin.