Wagner named his Bayreuth villa "Wahnfried" — loosely, "peace from madness" — and lived here from 1874 until his death in 1883. The house is now a museum, substantially reconstructed after wartime bombing, with a strong permanent collection covering Wagner's life, creative process, and the festival's history. He and Cosima are buried in the garden; Liszt, his father-in-law, is interred nearby in the city's main cemetery.
The exhibition traces Wagner's life from his chaotic early years to the consolidation of his legacy under Cosima after his death. There's considerable material on the festival's history, including the uncomfortable chapter of its enthusiasm for National Socialism in the 1930s — not glossed over, but addressed directly. The building itself is part of the story: the original villa was severely damaged by bombing in 1945 and rebuilt in the 1970s. A modern annex added in 1976 houses the main exhibition galleries.