Hohe Tauern Museum Worlds

Pablo Picasso once boasted: “Give me a museum and I will fill it.” – what one of the world’s most famous painters could do, one of Austria’s most beautiful regions has long been capable of – indeed, our museums are brimming with fascinating facts. Here, nature and the people who live alongside it are equally the artists. The Hohen Tauern Museum Network comprises three museums, each of which explores history and the immediate surroundings. At the Felberturm Museum, for instance, you can discover the glamorous and shadier sides of the mountain trade, at the Stoanabichl Celtic Village you can stroll through a reconstruction of a village over 2,000 years old, and at the Noriker Horse Museum, everything revolves around the hardy and good-natured Noriker horse breed.

• Mittersill: Felberturm Museum
• Uttendorf:Stoanabichl Celtic Village
• Niedernsill: Noriker Horse Museum

The Felber Tower was built in the first half of the 12th century; it owes its name to the Felber family of ministerials and served as a residence and defensive tower for the Lords of Velm. In 1415, the tower became the property of the Archbishops of Salzburg and was subsequently converted into a ‘Diensttroadkasten’. In 1812, this unique building, with its herringbone masonry, was auctioned off by the Bavarian state government and thus passed into private ownership and eventually into municipal ownership. In the 19th century, the tower gradually fell into disrepair and it was not until 1963 that it was renovated and restored, turning it into a local history museum. In 2021, the Felberturm Museum underwent a complete refurbishment and now focuses specifically on the theme of “mule-track trade” and the lives of the “Samer”, the mule-track traders of days gone by. Outside, you’ll find buildings typical of the region, such as a schoolhouse dating from 1609. In addition, there are many other interesting buildings outside the tower, such as a farm mill and the Troadkasten.

A burial ground dating from the Hallstatt period was discovered in 1962 whilst water pipes were being laid in Uttendorf. It was not until the mid-20th century that it became known that the Celts had lived here from around 1800 BC to the 4th century AD. Regular excavations took place between 1975 and 1990, during which 467 graves were found. Thanks to numerous grave goods, such as a necklace made of amber and glass beads, ceramic and bronze vessels, and iron knives, researchers were able to gain insights into the lives of the Celts, and evidence was even found of trade links extending as far as Germany, Italy and Slovenia. Today, you can visit the reconstructed village and soak up the mystique of the past. Even the entrance has something special about it: once you arrive at Stoanabichl, a huge wooden gate awaits you; after that, a narrow path winds its way up to the village and you find yourself transported back to late antiquity. From the fire pit, where the Celts probably gathered for meals, to the “weaving loom” and the bread oven, you’ll find everything up there, and it feels as though time has stood still. Work began on the reconstruction of the Celtic village at Stoanabichl in 2001. To date, the main house, the weaving workshop, the pottery workshop and the storehouse have been reconstructed.

As the name suggests, the Noriker Museum is all about the Noriker breed of horse. Visitors can expect a veritable world of horses; alongside natural history, the museum also covers cultural history. The name of the breed is derived from the Roman province of Noricum, and its development into the modern breed has involved many changes. Today, breeding takes place across five different bloodlines. Noriker horses are ideally suited as draught, riding and pack horses.