When the archbishop died in 1744, he left the palace to his nephew Laktanz, who was a great connoisseur and collector of art. In the end he had collected 570 paintings, including works by Rembrandt, Titian, Rubens and Poussin. In addition, Count Laktanz was one of the first patrons of Leopold Mozart and his son Wolfgang Amadeus.

When the archbishopric of Salzburg ended at the beginning of the 19th century, the sale of the palace’s treasures began. Laktanz’s son had no appreciation for art, and lent out some paintings from his father’s collection which were not returned. During the centuries that followed, there were frequent changes in the palace’s ownership, culminating in the loss of nearly all objects of art.