Château de Clervaux / The Family of Man
The oldest parts of Clervaux Castle date back to the 12th century, when it was built on the order of Count Gerhard von Sponheim, a brother of the Count of Vianden. Over the centuries it expanded greatly, and it was from here that Philip de Lannoi (the ascendant of Franklin Delano Roosevelt) set forth in 1621 to make his fortune in America. But in the dying days of World War II, the first engagements of Germany's Ardennes Counteroffensive (Battle of the Bulge) saw the town and its historic buildings destroyed, as the tanks rolled in. The burned ruins of the castle fell into state hands thereafter, and it was heavily rebuilt. Inside, you'll now find a number of museums and exhibits, including the tiny Museum of the Battle of the Bulge, though this is little signed and is mostly a collection of weapons and shrapnel, and a museum of 1/100 scale models of Luxembourg's castle. But pride of place goes to The Family of Man exhibition of photography, the greatest artistic sight in the country. Two entire floors are taken up by this UNESCO-listed exhibition that was curated and assembled by the Luxembourg-born photographer Edward J. Steichen (1879--1973). In 1951, he invited entries for a collection of images that would record mankind in all its flawed wonder and mystery. He whittled the entries down from 2 million to around 500 and toured them around the world. Since 1994, it has been exhibited in Clervaux and remains one of the world's great cultural sights, charting war, life, death, happiness, sadness, family, and everything in between in simple black-and-white prints. A must-see.
