The paper deals with the reception of the imperial vision of the "re-established empire" in the context of aristocratic residences in the era of Neoclassicism, Empire style and Biedermeier, with this vision most strongly reflected in the Empire style. The analysis is carried out on a representative set of specific examples of manor houses in Central Europe and especially the residences of Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar, Prince of Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein (1773–1859), whose interest in collecting and cultural heritage of antiquity is evidenced not only by preserved iconographic sources, but also by his private correspondence.