Carl Theodor Reiffenstein

[1] Initially, he planned to become an architect but found that he was more interested in Hessemer's architectural drawings so he switched to painting, with Heinrich von Rustige as instructor.

Many of his commissions came from the Rhein-Main region, but he also received an order from Amorbach destined for Queen Victoria in memory of her step-brother, Prince Karl von Leiningen.

For many years, he was a board member of the "Vereins für Geschichte und Altertumskunde" (Association for History and Archaeology) in his hometown.

In this capacity, he was involved in the effort to preserve the Goethe House, acting as treasurer for donations and contributions and instrumental in arranging its purchase by the "Freies Deutsches Hochstift" in 1863.

He compiled a seven volume work with over 1,600 images and 2,600 pages of extensive notes on architectural details, suspected changes, owners and the age of buildings throughout the Altstadt.

These volumes were bequeathed to the Historical Museum and have yet to be fully published, although many of the images have been used; notably in an edition of Goethe's Dichtung und Wahrheit.