Hohensalzburg Castle(Tourist attractions in Salzburg) in Austria

Hohensalzburg, view from Mönchsberg

Hohensalzburg Castle (German: Festung Hohensalzburg, literally "High Salzburg Fortress") is a castle in the Austrian city of Salzburg, atop the Festungsberg mountain. Erected at the behest of the Prince-Archbishops of Salzburg, it today with a length of 250 m (820 ft) and a width of 150 m (490 ft), is one of the largest medieval castles in Europe.

 Inner courtyard towards the Hohe Stock and St. George's Chapel

Interior

The fortress consists of various wings and courtyard. The Prince-Bishop's apartments are located in the so-called "Hoher Stock" (high floor).

 Chapel of archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach

Salzburg Bull

The Kraut Tower (Krautturm) houses a large aerophon of more than 200 pipes which is called the "Salzburg Bull" (Salzburger Stier). This huge mechanical organ was built in 1502 by Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach. It was renewed by Rochus Egedacher in 1735.

From Palm Sunday to 31 October the "Salzburg Bull" played daily at 7, 11 and 18'o clock. The aerophone thus initiated the playing of the carillon at the Residenzplatz and ended it again.

One of Austria's most famous cabaret prices is named after it.

 The Golden Chamber

Chapel of archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach

The Salzburg archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach (1495-1519) had the chapel built at a later time. One of the figure consoles in the beam ceiling had to be removed to make room for it. A richly ornamented star vault decorates the ceiling of the chapel. The inner part of the door at the entrance is covered with stucco. The painted frame shows red columns on a high plinth with grey capitals. The coat of arms of Salzburg and of Leonhard von Keutschach is reproduced in the tympanum beneath the mitre, legate cross and sword. A special feature of the coat of arms is the turnip and in many places in the fortress this can be found as an indication of prince-archbishop Keutschach's building activity. In the north wall of the chapel there are two opening which made it possible to attend the church service from the side room.

 Bedchamber of the Prince-Bishop

Golden Hall

Starting in 1498, Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach had the magnificent state apartments installed on the third floor. The rooms in which the archbishops would normally lived in were one floor below. The state apartments were primarily used for representative purposes and for festivities. The Golden Hall was richly decorated and indicates that the fortress served the archbishops not only as a refuge in times of crisis, but also frequently as a residence up to the 16th century.

In order to gain more space, Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach had four massive marble pillars constructed on the right-hand outer wall and had a loggia added on. As in the other rooms the ceiling is coffered, each coffer being adorned with gold buttons symbolising the stars in the sky.

The 17 metre long beam, supporting the ceiling, is particularly worth mentioning. The coat of arms of Leonhard von Keutschach together with those of the Holy Roman Empire, the most powerful German towns and the bishoprics that were connected to Salzburg are painted on it.

 View towards Hohensalzburg Castle from Mirabell gardens

Golden Chamber

The Golden Chamber is the most magnificently furnished room of the princely chambers. The two long walls are taken up by benches that are richly decorated with vines, grapes, foliage and animals. These benches used to be covered with cloth or leather, but the upholstery has not survived into the modern age. The walls also used to be covered in gold-embossed leather tapestry which adorned the lower part of the wall.

Bedchamber

The bedchamber is the most intimate room of the princely chambers. The original furniture and precious textiles, such as tapestry, were in the course of time replaced by more "modern" ones. The elaborate wainscoting to keep out the cold still bears witness to the splendour of the past. The upper part of the panels is decorated with gilded buttons and rosettes, whereas the lower part, which is bare today, was probably covered with leather or velvet tapestry. The door conceals a toilet, which is basically a hole in the floor with a wooden frame. Back in the past this was a highly modern sanitary facility and was accessible from each floor.



Posted in: Austria