990 - Martin Wirth, Meersburg, Winzergasse, timbered lane with steeple, Lake Constance, upper town, 1996

Martin Wirth, Meersburg, Winzergasse, timbered lane with steeple, Lake Constance, upper town, 1996 (1939 – 2017 Ilsenburg), red chalk on card, signed and dated (19)96 lower right, inscribed "Meersburg, Winzergasse" lower left, view into the rising lane with gabled houses, partly half-timbered, dormers with hoist beams and flower boxes, at the end the church tower with clock of the town parish church of Mariä Heimsuchung, on the right wrought-iron wall brackets with lanterns and a climbing plant, in front a figure seen from behind with cap and shoulder bag, in the middle ground passers-by in front of an antiques shop, good condition commensurate with age, slightly stained in places, image 47.5x36 cm (HxW) Meersburg lies on the northern shore of Lake Constance; the upper town, which received market rights in 1233, and the lower town on the lakeshore are separated by a difference in height of some 40 metres. The Winzergasse in the upper town was formerly called Kirchgasse and leads to the Catholic town parish church of Mariä Heimsuchung, whose nave was rebuilt from 1829 to 1833; only the bell tower, in the Middle Ages a defensive tower of the town wall, was left standing at that time. Around the town vines are cultivated on some 120 hectares. Meersburg is also known for its castle, mentioned as early as 988, which is regarded as the oldest fully preserved and inhabited castle in Germany, and for the Neues Schloss of the prince-bishops of Constance.