The Fuggerhouse is important on a number of levels. It occupies the largest amount of space of any building along Maximilianstrasse, one of the central historic streets in Augsburg, and is an exceptional example of conspicuous consumption due to its large size and frescoed exterior. (...)
The Fuggerhouse is important on a number of levels. It occupies the largest amount of space of any building along Maximilianstrasse, one of the central historic streets in Augsburg, and is an exceptional example of conspicuous consumption due to its large size and frescoed exterior. The interior includes decorations by several well-known artists: frescoes by Antonio Ponzano, plaster sculptures and reliefs by Carlo di Cesare del Palagio, and elaborately carved wooden panels by Wendel Dietrich.
The Fugger merchant banking family took over the role of the most powerful financial family in Europe from the Medicis, who, in the sixteenth century, became nobility and royalty. The Fuggers’ network reached as far afield as South America, Africa, and India. Clients included several Popes, a number of Habsburg emperors, Spain, Portugal, England, and Hungary, as well as the Medici family of Florence.
