Todo Suedtirol – Page 39

Venosta Valley Museum | Sluderno

How to reach the Venosta Valley Museum

The Venosta Valley Museum – “Vintschger Museum” in German, “Museo della Val Venosta” in Italy – in Sluderno (Schluderns) is, as the name reveals, dedicated to the valley and its different fields. The focus is set on ecologic, social and cultural issues as much as on archeology and water management. The latter is highly important in the valley, as this western part of South Tyrol is a rather dry area. The irrigation system of the valley dates back to the Middle Ages and is one of the most dense watering network of the Alps. The so-called “Waale” are today well-known due to a large number of lovely paths leading along these irrigation canals. The permanent exhibition “WaWo – s’Wosser zum Wassern” with the theme trail Quairwaal tells about the topic.

The museum has also dedicated one section to a highly interesting, buth rather sad subject, the “Schwabenkinder”. This term is used for the kids of the Val Venosta valley who went to work to Swabia in Germany in summertime, in order to alleviate poverty at home. This is an interreg-project of the European Union, project partner is the Regional Museum Landeck at Castel Landeck in North Tyrol. Another section, called “Archaic Venosta”, however, is dedicated to archaeology in the valley. In 1997, at the Ganglegg hill above the village of Sluderno, items of the Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman period were discovered.

Today in this best explored hilltop site of the Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman period, there is a prehistoric park showing orginal structures and two reconstructed buildings. Temporary exhibitions complete the offer. By the way: there’s another museum in the valley, which is similar called. The Upper Val Venosta Valley Museum is located in Curon Venosta and tells the story of Lake Resia and the villages submerged by its waters.

Opening hours:
March 20 – November 4 2019
Tuesday – Sunday: 10am – 12.30pm & 2pm – 6pm

Price:

Adult	6,00 €
Reduced	5,00 €
Scholar	2,00 €
Groups of 10 or more	5,00 €
Family card	12,00 €

Contact:
Vintschger Museum
Meranerstr. 1
39020 Sluderno
+39 0473 615590

National Park Aquaprad | Venosta Valley

How to reach the National Park aquaprad

The acquaprad National Park Visitors Center is found in Prato allo Stelvio. The modern building hosts an interactive presentation explaining the importance of water in the mountains. Water is indeed a vital element in the life of the Stelvio National Park and is a central theme in the permanent exhibition.

35 local fish species can be seen in twelve spectacular tanks. In an impressive manner, visitors will receive insight into the local fish fauna – from mountain streams to rivers, from high mountain lakes to the floodplain.

Water is the main theme at the visitor center aquaprad. After entering the facility, visitors can hear and see water. 30 local fish species can be seen in twelve spectacular tanks. In an impressive manner, visitors will receive insight into the local fish fauna – from mountain streams to rivers, from high mountain lakes to the floodplain.

Opening hours:
Tuesday – Friday: 9:30 am – 00:30 pm and 2:30 pm – 6 pm
Saturday – Sunday: 2:30 pm – 6 pm
Monday closed

Contact:
National Park aquaprad
Kreuzweg 4 C
39026 Prad am Stilfserjoch
+39 0473 618212

The Church of St. Magdalene of the Capuchin | Sterzing/Vipiteno

How to reach the The Church of St. Magdalene of the Capuchin

The first stone was laid for this simple, typical construction of the Capuchin in 1636 and the Church was consecrated just one year later. The altarpieces, presumably realised by Josef Renzler in around 1800, are worthy of note: The Patron Saint Magdalene, together with St. Francis and St. Anthony, can be seen on the main altar, while St. Felix and St. Anthony of Padua are depicted on the lateral altars.

Opening hours:
every day from 9 am to 5 pm

Free entry!

Contact:
The Church of St. Magdalene of the Capuchin
Frundsbergstraße
39049 Sterzing
+39 0472-765325

Castle ruin Lichtenberg | Prato allo Stelvio

How to reach Castle ruin Lichtenberg

Lichtenberg enchanted. Surrounded by 14 three-thousand-metre peaks, the castle ruin is one of the most impressive and art-historically valuable sights in South Tyrol.

The extensive complex from the beginnings of the 13th century was owned by the Counts of Tyrol until 1513. The freely accessible castle ruins in the upper Vinschgau are still owned by the Counts Khuen-Belasi. The castle complex in the Vinschgau, which can also be reached on foot from Prad, captivates visitors with its size and a magnificent cycle of frescoes, most of which can only be seen in the Innsbruck Ferdinandeum Museum.

Tower of the Twelve | Vipiteno

How to reach the Zwölferturm

The Tower of the Twelve in Vipiteno, the landmark of the Fugger town, is located at the end of the medieval old town.
One of the sights of Vipiteno (Sterzing) – besides the churches, museums and the Vipiteno City Hall with the Stone of Mithras – is the Tower of the Twelve, which separates the old town from the new town. It is called “Zwölferturm” in Geman and “Torre delle Dodici” in Italian. The tower is not only the landmark of Vipiteno, but with its 46 metres also its highest building.

Its name probably derives from the fact that its bell rings at noon and has always called the citizens to lunch. The Tower of the Twelve was built between 1468 and 1472 above the town passage and was thus used a the upper town gate. This was at a time when the nearby silver mine in the Val Ridanna valley led the region to prosperity and Vipiteno experienced its boom as a Fugger town. Two marble slabs above the archway still remind of the laying of the foundation stone by Sigismund, Archduke of Austria, in 1469.

In 1867, the Gothic pointed roof burned down and was replaced by a stepped gable. Temporarily, the tower served as the seat of the fire brigade, who had a good view on the entire town from there. Today the Tower of the Twelve can be visited on some special dates. During the Advent and Christmas season, the small wooden huts of the Vipiteno Christmas Market are placed around it. And how to reach the tower? It is located between the old town and the new town of Vipiteno, various parking facilities are nearby, e.g. the Centrum or the Piazza Europa car parks.

Opening hours: from the end of November 2019 to the beginning of January 2020
visits are possible during the Vipiteno Christmas MarketKontakt:
Zwölferturm

Neustadt 1
39049 Sterzing
+39 0472-765325

Church of S. John | Prato allo Stelvio

How to reach the Church of S. John

This very early church stands in the south-east part of the village, in the midst of green meadows. The church was built in the Romanesque style by the von Tschengels as their proprietary church at the end of the 13th century; it then benefited from the pastoral care of clerics from Tschengls. The last member of the Tschengls died in 1421. Inside the church John the Evangelist and John the Baptist are revered as patron saints. In the course of time the church was adapted to contemporary architectural styles and enriched with devotional pictures. Particular sights worth seeing are:

– Romanesque and Gothic frescoes
– the gallery from c. 1600
– the wooden baroque ceiling and pews
– a grave-stone from the Counts of Tschengels
– the frescoes uncovered in the last century
– two frescoes by Karl Plattner (1948)

The last constructional measure was the reroofing with small shingles in 2002.

Guided tours:
every tuesday, 10 am from Mid May to Mid September

The Church of St. Margaret | Sterzing/Vipiteno

How to reach the Church of St. Margaret

The Church was built between 1678 and 1680 in early baroque style, according to the design of Peter Delai. The bell tower, however, dates from a previous construction, which was cited as early as 1227. The altarpiece of the main altar, dedicated to the Patron Saint of the Church, St. Margaret, was realised by Josef Renzler in 1822.

Opening hours:
Every day from 9 am to 17 pm

Free entry!

Contact:
Church of St. Margaret
Margarethenstraße
39049 Sterzing
+39 0472-765325

Rio Pusteria Fortress | Rio di Pusteria

How to reach the Rio Pusteria Fortress

The Rio Pusteria Fortress can be found at the entrance to the Val Pusteria, between the villages of Rio Pusteria and Vandoies. The fortress is directly located along the main road, also the Pusterbike Cycle Route runs past this impressive place of interest. Exactly in this place, the borderline between the countships of Goerz and Tyrol ran in 1271. For this reason Meinhard, Duke of Carinthia, had a dam built, that is to say the castle-like Rio Pusteria Fortress.

Actually the original building was located 600 m in the west of the present-day location and consisted of a long-drawn-out barrage as well as two turrets. The ancient fortress was built according to the model of Mediaeval dam. The construction material consisted of natural and homogeneously-sized river stones, which were hardly modified. The last documents regarding this building are dated 1340.

The newly-built construction, that is by the way preserved still today, bears the hallmarks of Sigismund, Archduke of Austria. The fortress is decorated by round turrets, while a dam stretches up the forested slope. In fact, the Rio Pusteria Fortress not only used to be a toll station, but was also residential building and dam. The building can be visited in a guided tour in summer months, often it is also venue for theatre performances or other events.

Contact:
Rio Pusteria Fortress
Sonnleitenstr. 30
39037 Rio di Pusteria
+39 0472-886048

Pilgrimage Maria Trens | Vipiteno

How to reach the Pilgrimage Maria Trens

Once a farmer found a completely intact statue of the Virgin Mary under the rubble of a mudflow. He carefully carried the statue home, where he worshipped it with his family. But the next morning the pious farmer could not believe his eyes: the statue had disappeared. Should there have been brazen thieves at work here? After a long desperate search, he finally found the statue in the village chapel next to the church. The miraculous event was on everyone’s lips at lightning speed and soon many believers went to the “Trenser Mutter” to implore comfort and help from her.
For centuries the pilgrimage church Maria Trens has been attracting countless people from near and far who make pilgrimages with their intentions to the “Trenser Mutter”. The church is also a real jewel for art lovers. When the pilgrimage to Maria Trens in South Tyrol began is not scientifically proven. It is a fact that in 1345 an indulgence was granted in Avignon for the construction of a Marienkirche church, which already 100 years later enjoyed great popularity as a pilgrimage destination. In the 15th century the church was extended in the late Gothic style, 300 years later it was frescoed by the Viennese painter Adam Mölck in the course of a Baroque period. The paintings mainly show depictions from the life of the church patron saint Maria.
The present image of Our Lady of Grace was created around 1470 by an unknown carver from the environment of the famous master of Ulm, Hans Multscher. Since the beginning of the 18th century it has been worshipped in a specially erected side chapel – the Chapel of Grace. The figure of the Virgin Mary, carved from Swiss stone pine wood with a diadem and a cloak decorated with flowers, holds the Child Jesus in her arms; he playfully reaches with his left hand for the white veil of his mother, his right hand stretched out towards the pilgrims.
How many people in this long time with their worries and fears have visited the place of pilgrimage Maria Trens near Sterzing can only be guessed. Mental and physical need, illness and death – the numerous votive tablets in the church, an artistic testimony of deep popular devotion, give only a small insight into the intentions that people have carried to Mary the Blessed Mother.
The pilgrimage to Maria Trens still plays an important role in the ecclesiastical life of our holiday resorts today, when hundreds of faithful from the Sterzing area and the whole of South Tyrol flock together on the so-called “Court Cloister”, which takes place every year on 1 May, to sing and pray together on the centuries-old pilgrimage path to the church, which was newly laid out in 2000. In earlier years, some pilgrims were said to have climbed the last climb to the church even on their knees in order to give special emphasis to their requests. All this makes Maria Trens near Sterzing a very special place of strength, a true spiritual source even for non-pilgrims.

Opening hours:
Ganzjährig geöffnet

Free entry!

Contact:
Pfarrei Maria Himmelfahrt Maria Trens
Rudolf Maria Kruckenhauserstr. 02
39040 Freienfeld Maria Trens
+ 39 0472-647132

Funicular Rio di Pusteria

How to reach the funicular di Rio di Pusteria – Mühlbach

The funicular in Rio di Pusteria/Mühlbach connects the center of the village (777 mt) with the village of Maranza/Meransen (1400 mt). The cabin of the funicular has a capacitiy of 12 people and it takes about 10 minutes from one village to the other.

Opening hours:
all-season
Monday – Saturday: 6.50am – 8am, 9.10am – 11.50am, 1:15pm -6:40pm
Sunday:first journey at 08:30 without break in the morning, lunch break 11.50am – 1:15pm, 1.15 – 6.40pm continuous operation

Price:

Return ticket	9,00 €
Dogs – one-way ticket	3,50 €
Dogs – return ticket	5,00 €
Bikes – one-way ticket	3,50 €
Bikes – return ticket	7,00 €

Note: In the funicular di Rio di Pusteria as well as in all public means of transport a muzzle for dogs is obligatory!

Contact:
Meransen
Seilbahnplatz
39037 Meransen
+39 0472-520158