Mariedal Castle was built in 1666. The splendid interior of the castle provides stucco ceiling and wainscoting. A magnificent portrait collection of the Sparrerska family is displayed there. The manor was called Sörbo and the valley upstream is still called Sörbo Valley. In the middle of the 17th century Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie acquired the manor. On these grounds the present castle with two wings was erected. The castle was named after Magnus Gabriel’s wife Maria Euphrosyne, the sister of King Karl X. It has been commonly assumed that Jean De la Valle was responsible for the design.
There are many obvious similarities between Mariedal and other structures designed by De la Valle, in particular the Riddarhuset (House of Knights) in Stockholm, however, there is yet no proof of any connection between the buildings. Mariedal is now owned by the Virgin family and is counted as one of Västergötland’s finest castles.
References:The Clementinum is a historic complex of buildings in Prague. Until recently the complex hosted the National, University and Technical libraries, the City Library also being located nearby on Mariánské Náměstí. The Technical library and the Municipal library have moved to the Prague National Technical Library at Technická 6 since 2009. It is currently in use as the National Library of the Czech Republic.
Its history dates from the existence of a chapel dedicated to Saint Clement in the 11th century. A Dominican monastery was founded in the medieval period, which was transformed in 1556 to a Jesuit college. In 1622 the Jesuits transferred the library of Charles University to the Klementinum, and the college was merged with the University in 1654. The Jesuits remained until 1773, when the Klementinum was established as an observatory, library, and university by the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria.