Asam Building

The Asamgebäude stands in Freising’s old town, a baroque four-wing complex built around a small courtyard. Construction began in 1695, with the west wing finished first, the east wing added later, and the south wing completed in the 18th century. Antonio Riva is credited with the initial design, while Nikolaus Liechtenfurtner contributed the stucco work. The building once housed a church-run college and grammar school under Prince-Bishop Johann Franz Eckher von Kapfing und Liechteneck. By the mid-1700s it had grown from about 100 to 900 students before numbers fell sharply at the century’s end. The Asamsaal inside the west wing is famous for its 1711 ceiling frescoes by Hans Georg Asam. After the college closed in 1803, the hall served as a courtroom, gymnasium, and even a theatre before being restored in 1949. A major seven-year renovation finished in 2024 revealed a forgotten 18th-century pump system beneath the floor. The project cost €64.7 million and won the Bavarian Denkmalschutzmedaille for the city in 2025. Visitors now enter through a new central courtyard gateway and climb a broad staircase to the museum on the first floor and the Asamsaal on the second. The hall’s restored frescoes and modern lighting support concerts, lectures and civic events. Downstairs, the Freising city museum displays local history in rooms that once held classrooms and judges’ chambers. Outside, the baroque façade and small bell tower mark the building’s long role in Freising’s intellectual and spiritual life.