Zwinger

Dresden's most celebrated tourist attraction is the Zwinger, a gem of courtly Baroque architecture in which overflowing creative power and clarity of form are most happily combined.

The best approach to the Zwinger is over the old moat (the Zwingergraben) to the rear of the Theater (Schauspielhaus; 1912-13) and through the Kronentor. On the front of this gateway, which is topped by the royal crown of Poland, the emblems of the Saxon/Polish dynasty of Augustus the Strong, who had the Zwinger built (by M. D. Pöppelmann, 1710-32) as a celebration of his power.

The Zwinger shows an extraordinary variety and magnificence of form: the majestic 32-bayed Long Gallery on the south side, the four symmetrically arranged pavilions on the east and west sides, the Wallpavillon in the center of the semicircular arched gallery at the west end - with its musical lightness the particular jewel of the Zwinger - and the Nymphenbad (Bath of the Nymphs) with its graceful fountains and mythological female figures (from the workshop of Balthasar Permoser, who collaborated with Pöppelmann on the construction of the Zwinger).

The Zwinger's collection of porcelain is the second largest in the world.

The Zwinger also has a large collection of scientific instruments and a carillon of 40 porcelain bells.