There are few city silhouettes more striking than Dresden’s. The classic view from the Elbe’s northern bank takes in a playful phalanx of delicate spires, soaring towers and dominant domes belonging to palaces, churches and stately buildings. Numerous artists, most notably the Italian Canaletto, have set up their easels to capture this breathtaking panorama.
‘Florence of the north’, the Saxon capital was called in the 18th century, when it was a centre of artistic activity presided over by the cosmopolitan Augustus the Strong (August der Starke) and his son Augustus III. Their vision produced many of Dresden’s iconic buildings, including the Zwinger, the Frauenkirche and the Hofkirche.

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