Culture & Sights

The sights shown here are only a small excerpt.

The castle is a historically grown complex and includes an extensive architectural history. With its preserved Romanesque
masonry and spatial structures from the middle of the 12th century, the castle is now considered one of the most important
secular buildings of Romanesque architecture in Austria.

The late Romanesque core of the main castle stands out clearly and can also be seen in the rooms of the lower castle and
the main floor.

The Pankratius Chapel adjacent to the main floor invites you to linger and have a contemplative moment during the tour.

Some of the outer walls of the castle still contain foundations from the first construction phase. However, the majority of the
walls were built during the major renovation of the castle under the then owners - the Counts of Khevenhiller in the years
1590/1613. This curtain wall, which was destroyed during the Ottoman attacks on Vienna in 1683, still shows a point of
attack by the Ottomans: the destroyed semi-round tower, in which the castle's cash desk is now located. In addition to the
still preserved Romanesque castle chapel and the men's chamber, Austria's oldest bed, a Romanesque sleeping niche, 
can be admired in the castle hall.

Saint Jerome

Red marble, 125 x 100 cm, Salzburg, around the middle of the 14th century.

Gothic formal elements - somewhat hard and sharp folds in connection with soft
flowing garment hems - mix - e.g. B. in the minds of young people - with
Renaissance-like features, which are characteristic of the Salzburg sculpture of 
this time.

The origin of the epitaph poses some puzzles, but it seems likely that this middle
part of an altar comes from part of an altar that was donated to the Maria am
Gestade church in Vienna in 1394 by Johann von Liechtenstein-Nikolsburg.

In 1391, Baron Johann von Liechtenstein-Nikolsburg, court master of Albrecht III,
changed the patronage of the Maria am Gestade church in connection with the
desire to expand the church. He wanted to build a collegiate collegiate church or
cathedral. Therefore, on his behalf, the foundation stone for today's Gothic nave of
the church was laid in 1394. He had some altars built and signed a document at the altar of Saints John and Jerome in
1394. 
The Liechtenstein family remained connected to Maria am Gestade until the 16th century, as two gravestones and a coat of
arms in the choir room still bear witness to today.

When the Maria am Gestade church was neo-Gothicized at the beginning of the 19th century, this altar was removed from
the church and brought to the castle by Prince Johann II of Liechtenstein.

Enthroned Madonna

Limestone with colored paint, 70 x 50 cm, Italian, around the middle
 of the 14th century

At first glance it is noticeable that the Madonna is not carrying the Christ child,
but is holding her hands crossed on her chest. This attitude suggests that this
is a Mary at an Annunciation. The sculpture has been taken out of its original
context and the annunciation angel is missing. Strong plasticity and a
monumental posture characterize this figure. Characteristic are the heavy
hands and the powerful head with the naturalistic facial features, which are
somewhat reminiscent of the classic ideal of beauty associated with the
names Nicola Pisano and Giotto. The excellent quality, the sweeping, generous folding and the fine details in the throne
architecture speak for a master who was trained in the environment of the early great Trecento sculptors. The stylistic
features suggest that it comes from Tuscany and was created in the first half of the 14th century.

Saint George

Above the entrance to the miners' hall there is a smaller relief panel with St. George fighting a dragon 
(limestone, approx. 50 x 50 cm, Venetian, first half of the 15th century). 
Unfortunately, in recent decades the figure's head has been chopped off.

Castle chapel of St. Pankratius

A special cultural jewel is the castle's chapel, built around 1130 and dedicated to Saint Pankratius.

The St. Pankratius Chapel is one of the oldest castle chapels in Austria. Today it is considered one of the few surviving
families or ruler chapels from the 12th century.

In the chapel there is a red chalk drawing depicting the
crucifixion of Christ with Mary and John standing under the
cross, from the middle of the 13th century.

On the west wall there is a relief panel: it depicts the Man of
Sorrows with two small floating angel figures - made of
limestone, 115 x 65 cm, Venetian, first half of the 15th century.
The half-figure Man of Sorrows belongs to a new type of
emotional devotional image that was very widespread from the
14th century onwards.

The castle bell, which was donated by Princess Gina of
Liechtenstein in 1983, rings daily from the chapel tower, the
east tower of the castle. The castle chapel is open for church
services and devotions on major church holidays and
memorial days.


The castle chapel today houses a variety of relic treasures, including a special relic: a thorn from Christ's crown of thorns
from the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris, a relic that belonged to King Louis IX had been acquired in Constantinople in 1237.
For its preservation he built the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris, the former palace chapel of the French kings. Until 1809, the
French kings were crowned with this crown of thorns. With Napoleon's coronation in 1809, this tradition was interrupted and
Napoleon gave away parts of the crown of thorns. The castle chapel is therefore also a unique storage place for this special
relic.

The castle chapel is still used for religious worship today.

Website: http://www.burgkapelle.at