You only see what you know (Goethe)
You find this sundial on a chimney of Seitenstetten Abbey (Stift Seitenstetten). This abbey is a large Benedictine monastery in the Austrian region of Mostviertel. The inscription “Ora et Labora” refers to the motto of the Benedictines. It translates into “Pray and Work”. [German]
Austria is not a natural home for elephants, leaving aside prehistoric ages. Nevertheless, you often find their depictions on old facades. For example, this inn in Scheibbs has been known as “Zum Schwarzen Elefanten” (Black Elephant Inn) since 1541.
After staying a night at the former Zell Manor, I came across this castle on my morning walk. It is generally known as Rothschild Castle (Rothschildschloss) since it was rebuilt in Neo-Gothic style by Albert Salomon Anselm von Rothschild.
If you look at the sculptures decorating the courtyard of Schallaburg Castle (Schloss Schallaburg), you may discover the “Hundefräulein“. This is the bust of a lady whose head looks like the head of a dog.
This stone bridge was built in 1554 by Valentin Staudinger. The bridge using a rock in the middle of the river is considered to be the oldest still existing bridge crossing the Erlauf river. The name ‘Roman Bridge’ (Römerbrücke) for a 16th century bridge is odd but there is an assumption that the Romans used the same rock as base for their bridge.
The museum of historical targets displays a collection of target boards (Schützenscheiben) dating from 1670 up to 1941 used by the local rifle club (Schützenverein). In general, these boards display scenes of daily life, local events and even important persons of history.
The former Zell Manor (Schloss Zell) houses a hotel today: “Das Schloss an der Eisenstrasse“. The hotel name refers to the region’s history, where many ironworking plants settled along the main road.
The trail along the Mendlingtal is a path of about 3 kilometres. It leads from a theme park about logging up to a former Hammerherrenhaus (Home of the owner of a hammer mill). The scenery is changing several times. Sometimes one walk along a tame creek, sometimes one walk along footbridges high over a stream in full spate.
At the theme park Mendlingtal there is a chance to watch log drivers at work. In the photo above some workers are trying to put the logs through the last weir before the logs will arrive at the timber mill.
Everybody knows the scenery of American Old West. Can we see anything similar in good old Austria too? Sure! The photo shown above was taken at a theme park in Mendlingtal Valley in Mostviertel. The park is all about logging in earlier times. The building in the background is housing a Venetian saw dating back to 1907.
At the theme park Mendlingtal the former building for the young blacksmiths (Schmiedegesellen) serves as museum now. Inside one can learn about the life of the blacksmiths, woodcutters and the owners of the hammer mills named Hammerherren.
The festival ‘Gipfelklänge’ in Mostviertel offered two days of hiking through the landscape of nature park Eisenwurzen while listening to music at some places along the hiking tour. At the picture above one can see the group ‘Saxofour’