About two kilometres south of the ruins on the eastern slopes there are two other heritage sites hidden in the forest and both called Altburg ("Old Castle").

From the early 14th century the Altensteins only appear as vassals of Würzburg, occasionally of Bamberg, but also had fiefs of the abbeys of Banz and Langheim.

Over the succeeding centuries the place developed into a typical Ganerbenburg, a castle occupied and run by several branches of the family in common.

A Burgfrieden agreement in 1441 named ten brothers and cousins from five families, each of whom lived in their own cabinets (domestic quarters) in the castle.

In 1567 William of Stein zu Altenstein opposed the Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg during the Grumbach Feud and was therefore executed by sword on the market place at Gotha.

In 1695, Emperor Leopold I elevated John Casimir of Stein zu Altenstein to the rank of imperial free baron (Reichsfreiherrenstand).

The Steins of Altenstein lived at their family seat until 1703, but then moved down into the valley to their newly built schloss of Pfaffendorf.

In 1768 Christian Adam Louis von Stein sold the manor of Maroldsweisach to Joseph Anton, Baron Horneck of Weinheim.

An 18th-century stone bridge crosses the neck ditch, about 15 metres wide, to the main gate which is flanked by two round towers.

The two round towers on either side each had three unvaulted storeys with T-shaped keyhole embrasures or T-embrasures with low bases.

Of the Hussite era, only the eastern part remains; the western area of the castle, with its plain corbels dates to a remodelling in 1567.

Behind the gateway rise the ruins of the late Romanesque bergfried or keep, whose north wall still reaches a height of about 10 metres.

Only parts of the outer shell have survived; the wall being constructed of closely packed rusticated ashlars with narrow channels the remains of the infill being made of herringbone pattern bricks (Opus spicatum).

At the foot of the tower a garderobe shaft indicates that the original neck ditch was located immediately in front of the bergfried.

The main entrance of the Romanesque castle was probably in the vicinity of the present gate - a reconstruction by Joachim Zeune, a German medieval archaeologist - but was later moved to the south side.

The extensive vaulted cellars, some hewn out of the rock, were largely closed off during the restoration work for bat conservation reasons, and are only accessible on special occasions.

The massive Rhaetian sandstone rocks are sliding slowly down the castle hill and collapses still occur today.

It had to be rebuilt when the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg, John II of Brunn, elevated the old chapel to become the parish church of the village.

The chapel comprised a rectangular nave with an attached choir with net vaulting (Netzgewölbe) at the eastern end.

Small rectangular window openings once lit the interior of the ground floor room with its two groin vaults.

Only the base of the original wall survives on the north side of the nave, the remaining material was changed during an inappropriately executed renovation.

The regular ashlars were set in place with an external lewis (scissor tongs or Mauerzange) which left marks on the stone.