Austria - Mapcard

A mapcard of Austria.

Sent by Ingrid, a postcrosser from Linz, Austria.

Austria - Fertö / Neusiedlersee Cultural Landscape

Nationalpark Neusiedler See - Seewinkel, a part of Fertö / Neusiedlersee Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Claudia, a postcrosser from Vienna, Austria.

This is from UNESCO : The Fertö-Neusiedler Lake and its surroundings are an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement and land use representative of a culture. The present character of the landscape is the result of millennia-old land-use forms based on stockraising and viticulture to an extent not found in other European lake areas. The historic centre of the medieval free town of Rust constitutes an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement representative of the area. The town exhibits the special building mode of a society and culture within which the lifestyles of townspeople and farmers form a united whole. The Fertö-Neusiedler Lake has been the meeting place of different cultures for eight millennia, and this is graphically demonstrated by its varied landscape, the result of an evolutionary and symbiotic process of human interaction with the physical environment.

The lake lies between the Alps, 70 km distant, and the lowlands in the territory of two states, Austria and Hungary. The lake itself is in an advanced state of sedimentation, with extensive reed stands. It has existed for 500 years within an active water management regime. In the 19th century, canalization of Hanság shut the lake off from its freshwater marshland. Since 1912 completion of a circular dam ending at Hegykö to the south has prevented flooding.

Two broad periods may be discerned: from around 6000 BC until the establishment of the Hungarian state in the 11th century AD and from the 11th century until the present. The World Heritage site lies in a region that was Hungarian territory from the 10th century until the First World War. From the 7th century BC the lake shore was densely populated, initially by people of the early Iron Age Hallstatt culture and on through late prehistoric and Roman times. In the fields of almost every village around the Lake there are remains of Roman villas. The basis of the current network of towns and villages was formed in the 12th and 13th centuries, their markets flourishing from 1277 onwards, when they were relieved of many fiscal duties.

The mid-13th century Tatar invasion left this area unharmed, and it enjoyed uninterrupted development throughout medieval times until the Turkish conquest in the late 16th century. The economic basis throughout was the export of animals and wine. Rust in particular prospered on the wine trade. Its refortification in the early 16th century as a response to the then emerging Ottoman threat marked the beginning of a phase of construction in the area, first with fortifications and then, during the 17th-19th centuries, with the erection and adaptation of domestic buildings. The remarkable rural architecture of the villages surrounding the lake and several 18th-and 19th-century palaces add to the area's considerable cultural interest. The palace of the township of Nagycenk and the Fertöd Palace are included in detached areas of the core zone outside the buffer zone.

Széchenyi Palace, at the southern end of the lake, is a detached ensemble of buildings in the centre of a large park, initially built in the mid-18th century on the site of a former manor house. It acquired some of its present form and appearance around 1800. The Baroque palace garden was originated in the 17th century. In the late 18th century an English-style landscape garden was laid out.

Between 1769 and 1790 Josef Haydn's compositions were first heard in the Fertöd Esterházy Palace. It was the most important 18th-century palace of Hungary, built on the model of Versailles. The plan of the palace, garden and park was on geometrical lines which extended to the new village of Esterháza. There, outside the palace settlement, were public buildings, industrial premises and residential quarters. The palace itself is laid out around a square with rounded internal corners. To the south is an enormous French Baroque garden that has been changed several times, the present layout being essentially that of 1762.

Austria - National Flower - Edelweiss (Leonopodium alpinum)

EDELWEISS (leontopodium alpinum). This flower is the national flower of Austria.

Sent by Claudia, a postcrosser from Austria.

This is from Wikipedia : Edelweiss i/ˈeɪdəlvaɪs/, Leontopodium alpinum, is a well-known European mountain flower, belonging to the sunflower family.

The common name comes from German edel, meaning "noble", and weiß (also spelled weiss) "white", thus signifying "noble whiteness".

The scientific name Leontopodium is a Latin adaptation of Greek leontopódion (λεοντοπόδιον) "lion's paw", from léōn "lion" and pódion "foot" (diminutive of poús, podós "foot").

The Romanian name, floarea reginei, means "Queen's flower". Also, another common name is floare de colţ which means "mountain flower".

The Persian name is gol-e-yax, which translates as "ice flower"

Leaves and flowers are covered with white hairs and appear woolly (tomentose). Flowering stalks of Edelweiss can grow to a size of 3–20 cm (in cultivation, up to 40 cm). Each bloom consisting of five to six small yellow flower heads (5 mm) surrounded by bracts in star formation. The flowers are in bloom between July and September.

Austria - Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut Alpine (3) - Bishop's Mitre

>>BISHOP MITRE<< IN THE SALZKAMMERGUT, AUSTRIA.
It is part of Hallstatt-Dachstein / Salzkammergut Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Stefan, a postcrosser from Austria.

Austria - Hallstatt-Dachstein / Salzkammergut Cultural Landscape (2)

Gosausee(933m), the romantic mountain lake, with high roof stone (3,004m).

Sent by Julia, a postcrosser from Austria.

Austria - United Nations Office In Vienna

VIENNA
International Centre (UNO-City).

Sent by Anita, a postcrosser from Graz in Austria.

This is from Wikipedia : The United Nations Office in Vienna (UNOV) is one of the four major UN office sites where several different UN agencies have a joint presence. The office complex is located in Vienna, the capital of Austria, and is part of the Vienna International Centre, a cluster of several major international organizations. The UNOV was established on 1 January 1980, and was the third such office established.

Austria - Wachau Cultural Landscape (2)

A boy and a girl in traditional costumes of Wachau. Wachau tradional landscape is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Martina, a postcrosser from Wachau, Austria.

Austria - Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut Cultural Landscape (1)

Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Julia, a postcrosser from Austria.

This is from UNESCO : The Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut Alpine region is an outstanding example of a natural landscape of great beauty. It also has great scientific interest because it contains evidence of a fundamental human economic activity, the production of salt.

Human activity in the magnificent natural landscape of the Salzkammergut began in prehistoric times, with the salt deposits being exploited as early as the 2nd millennium BC. The name of the medieval town, derived from the West German hal (salt) and the Old High German stat (settlement), first recorded in a deed of 1305, testifies to its primary function. This resource formed the basis of the area's prosperity until the mid-20th century, a prosperity that is reflected in the fine architecture of the town of Hallstatt.

The town grew up along the narrow strip between the steep mountainside of the Salzberg and the lake, and on the Mühlbach, an artificial promontory out into the lake resulting from the dumping of mining debris over the centuries. Here in the inner market town the houses, largely late Gothic, are ranged round a triangular market square. The typical Hallstatt house is tall and narrow, making maximum use of the restricted space and the steep topography. The lower storeys are constructed in stone with barrel vaulting supporting timber-framed upper storeys, as is customary in the Alpine region. Only a few preserve the original flat saddleback roofs covered with wooden planks or shingles. The southern part of the town, known as In der Lahn, located at the mouth of the Echterntal, is largely of 18th-century date, much of it built after the 1750 fire.

Among the more notable buildings are the St Mary's Roman Catholic Parish Church built in the late 15th century to replace an earlier Romanesque structure, parts of which survive. Having suffered only slight damage during the 1750 fire its only Baroque features are the roof and the multi-tiered spire. It contains a number of outstanding works of art, including a late Gothic altarpiece from the Astl workshop.

The small St Michael Chapel and Charnel House is a Gothic structure in the tiny graveyard immediately north of the parish church. Its basement, viewable at ground level, contains a neatly arranged assemblage of human skulls and long bones, the skulIs being marked with names and other details of the deceased.

The property also includes the Dachstein Mountains, rising to some 3,000 m, which form the highest of the karst massifs in the northern limestone Alps. They are notable for the large number of caves they contain, the longest being the Hillatzhöhle (81 km). Each cave is speleologically different, but the fact that they enjoy single management allows a range of information and experience to be made available in a coherent programme of conservation, accessibility and interpretation. The Dachstein-Rieseneishöhle is the most impressive ice cave in Austria. Some parts of the mine are now accessible to visitors, including areas made safe for displays arising from the continuing programme of archaeological investigation.

The Dachstein massif is exceptional among Alpine karstic areas for retaining its glaciation. Its landscape takes eight distinct forms: each of these zones has its own distinct climate and hence a characteristic flora and fauna.

Austria - City of Graz – Historic Centre and Schloss Eggenberg

City of Graz, part of City of Graz – Historic Centre and Schloss Eggenberg, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Anneliese, a postcrosser from Austria.

The historic centre of the city of Graz reflects artistic and architectural movements originating from the Germanic region, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean, for which it served as a crossroads for centuries. The greatest architects and artists of these different regions expressed themselves forcefully here and thus created brilliant syntheses. The urban complex forming the historic centre of the city is an exceptional example of a harmonious integration of architectural styles from successive periods. Each age is represented by typical buildings, which are often masterpieces. The urban physiognomy faithfully tells the story of its historic development.

The first traces of continuous human settlement go back to the Neolithic period. The site was not a Roman settlement, even though crossed by a few roads. After the fall of the Roman Empire, it was invaded, successively by Avars, Hungarians, and finally by German settlers. Graz was included in the March of Carinthia and mentioned for the first time in an official deed of 1128-29. Around this time an open market began to flourish, leading to urban development with the immigration of Bavarian settlers. After the Treaty of Neuberg (1379) and the first division of the Habsburg heritage, Graz came under the rule of the line established by Leopold III.

The 16th century was marked by constant threats from the Turks, as well as religious turmoil. The medieval fortifications were modernized according to Renaissance principles. In 1564, Graz became the capital of Inner Austria, despite the danger of Turkish invasions and the advances made by the Reformation. When elected Emperor in 1618, Ferdinand, son of Archduke Charles II, transferred his court to Vienna, and Graz underwent a relative economic recession. When the danger from the Turks was finally averted the economy boomed once again. Aristocrats and bourgeoisie competed with each other in their aspirations for honours and culture, and several mansions were built in Renaissance or early Baroque style.

Among the hundreds of buildings of great historic and architectural interest, a few particularly remarkable edifices are worthy of note. Of the original castle where Emperor Frederick III resided, all that remains is a Gothic hall, a late Gothic chapel, and a double spiral staircase going back to 1499. The wing constructed by Archduke Charles in 1570 has remained largely intact. Frederick III built the present cathedral in late Gothic style (1438-64) alongside a Romanesque church dedicated to St Aegidius. It contains admirable frescoes such as the 'Scourges of God', attributed to Thomas von Villach (1480). Following the transfer of the bishopric from Seckau to Graz, the church of St Aegidius, used for 200 years as a centre for the Counter-Reformation, became the cathedral of the new diocese in 1786.

The Mausoleum of Emperor Ferdinand II, started in 1614 by Giovanni de Ponis, was only consecrated in 1714 when the interior decoration, entrusted to Johann Bernhard Fischer von Ehrlach, was completed. The facade in particular reflects the transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque style and is an original synthesis between a powerful architecture topped by light domes. The Seminary (former Jesuit College): unlike other colleges, this impressive complex, started in 1572, was not remodelled in the Baroque style and is therefore an important illustration of the severe Renaissance architecture adopted by the order when it was first established in the German province.

After the dissolution of the order in 1773, the Jesuit University came under public control. In order to safeguard its collection, the library was installed in the old magna aula and in the theatre, on the orders of Empress Maria Theresa. Its decoration and furnishings make it a significant manifestation of the transition from the Rococo to the classical style, and it now serves as a show case for the Styrian Archive

Austria - Vienna

Images of Vienna, Austria.

Sent by Oliver, a postcrosser from Vienna, Austria.

Austria - Wachau Cultural Landscape (1) - Burgruine Aggstein

The ruin of Aggstein Castle in Austria. It is a part of Wachau Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sent by Martina, a postcrosser from Austria.

The Wachau, a stretch of the Danube valley between Melk and Krems, is an outstanding example of a riverine landscape bordered by mountains in which material evidence of its long historical evolution has survived to a remarkable degree. The architecture, the human settlements, and the agricultural use of the land in the Wachau vividly illustrate a basically medieval landscape which has evolved organically and harmoniously over time. The Wachau is a landscape of high visual quality which preserves in an intact and visible form many traces - in the form of architecture (monasteries, castles, ruins) urban design (towns and villages) and agricultural use, principally for the cultivation of vines - of its evolution since prehistory.

Clearance of the natural forest cover by man began in the Neolithic period, although radical changes in the landscape did not take place until around 800, when the Bavarian and Salzburg monasteries began to cultivate the slopes of the Wachau, creating the present-day landscape pattern of vine terraces. In the centuries that followed, the acreage under cultivation fluctuated, under the influence of changes of climate and the wine market and acute labour shortages and the resultant wage increases in the 17th century.

In the 18th century, hillside viticulture was actively promoted in ecologically optimal regions. The areas released in this way were given over to pasture, with the ensuing economic consequences: some enterprises had to close down whereas others were enlarged. It was at this time that viticulture was finally abandoned in the upper stretches of the Wachau. Development of the countryside in the 19th century had particularly far-reaching consequences for the Wachau. The ratio of acreages devoted to viticulture and fruit growing respectively continues to be closely linked with recurrent fluctuations in markets for the products, giving the Wachau its characteristic appearance.

The basic layouts of the Wachau towns date back to the 11th and 12th centuries. The development of the settlements with their homogeneous character becomes evident in the town structures, both in the fabric and arrangement of the houses on mostly irregular lots and in the street patterns, which have remained practically unchanged since the late Middle Ages. Some town centres have been extended to some extent on their outer fringes by the construction of small residential buildings, mostly from 1950 onwards. The buildings in the Wachau towns date from more recent periods than the street plans. In the 15th and 16th centuries, stone construction began to replace the wooden peasant and burgher houses.

The winegrowers' farmsteads, which are oblong, U-shaped, or L-shaped or consist of two parallel buildings, date back to the late Middle Ages and the 16th-17th centuries. Most of these, with lateral gate walls or integrated vaulted passages and service buildings, feature smooth facades, for the most part altered from the 18th and 19th centuries onwards. Street fronts are often accentuated by late-medieval/post-medieval oriels on sturdy brackets, statues in niches, wall paintings and sgraffito work, or remnants of paintwork or rich Baroque facades. The steeply pitched, towering hipped roof occurs so frequently that it can be regarded as an architectural characteristic of the Wachau house.

The 18th-century buildings, which still serve trade and craft purposes and are partly integrated in the town structure, such as taverns or inns, stations for changing draught horses, boat operators' and toll houses, mills, smithies, or salt storehouses, frequently go back to the 15th and 16th centuries. There is a number of castles dominating the towns and the Danube valley and many architecturally and artistically significant ecclesiastical buildings dominate both townscape and landscape.

Austria - Grüsse aus Österreich

Greetings from Austria.

Sent by Claudia, a postcrosser who lives near Vienna, Austria.

Austria - Salzburg

SALZBURG
View to the Old-Town from Mönchsberg

Sent by Maeusefan from Salzburg in Austria.

Austria - Johan Strauss' Monument

JOHANN STRAUSS, 1825-1899, the statue of the world famous "King of Waltz" in the Stadtpark.

Sent by Sibylle, a postcrosser from Vienna, Austria.

This is from Wikipedia : Johann Strauss II (October 25, 1825 – June 3, 1899; also known as fully Johann Baptist Strauss, and Johann Strauss, Jr., the Younger, or the Son (German: Sohn) was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed over 500 waltzes, polkas, quadrilles, and other types of dance music, as well as several operettas and a ballet. In his lifetime, he was known as "The Waltz King", and was largely responsible for the popularity of the waltz in Vienna during the 19th century.

Strauss was born in St. Ulrich (now a part of Neubau), the son of Johann Strauss I, another composer of dance music. His father did not wish him to become a composer, but rather a banker; however, the son defied his father's wishes, and went on to study music with the composer Joseph Drechsler and the violin with Anton Kollmann, the ballet répétiteur of the Vienna Court Opera. Strauss had two younger brothers, Josef and Eduard Strauss, who became composers of light music as well, although they were never as well-known as their elder brother.

Some of Johann Strauss's most famous works include the waltzes The Blue Danube, Kaiser-Walzer, Tales from the Vienna Woods, the Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka, and the Pizzicato Polka. Among his operettas, Die Fledermaus and Der Zigeunerbaron are the most well-known.

Austria - Vienna - Hundertwasser Haus

Hundertwasser Haus in Vienna, Austria.

Sent by Inge from Heringen in Germany.

This is from Wikipedia : The Hundertwasser House Vienna (German: Hundertwasserhaus Wien) is an apartment house in Vienna, Austria, designed by Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser. This landmark of Vienna is located in the 3. district, Kegelgasse 34-38 / Löwengasse 41-43, at 48°12′26″N 16°23′39″E / 48.20722°N 16.39417°E / 48.20722; 16.39417.

The house was built between 1983 and 1986 by architects Univ.-Prof. Joseph Krawina and Peter Pelikan. It features undulating floors ("an uneven floor is a divine melody to the feet"), a roof covered with earth and grass, and large trees growing from inside the rooms, with limbs extending from windows. Hundertwasser took no payment for the design of the house, declaring that it was worth it, to prevent something ugly from going up in its place.

Within the house there are 52 apartments, four offices, 16 private terraces and three communal terraces, and a total of 250 trees and bushes. The Hundertwasser House is one of Vienna's most visited buildings and has become part of Austria's cultural heritage.

Austria - Salzburg - The Sound of Music

View to the Old-Town from Mönchsberg, one of the five mountains in the city of Salzburg, Salzburgerland, Austria.

Sent by Patrik from Straßwalchen in Austria.

This is from Wikipedia :

Austria - Salzburg - Mozartstadt

Sent by Patrik from Straßwalchen in Austria.

This postcard shows the Mozartstadt (or Mozart City), a designated city in Salzburg, as it in a special way with the lives of composers Leopold Mozart and especially his son Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Austria - Enns

Sent by Patrik from Straßwalchen in Austria.

This postcard shows "Zum Goldenen Schiff", a hotel and a restaurant in Enns, Austria.

This is from Wikipedia : Enns is a city in the Austrian state of Upper Austria, located 281 m above sea level on the river Enns, which forms the border to the state of Lower Austria.

Enns was one of the first places in Austria to receive town privileges. The town charter dates to April 22, 1212, the document is displayed at the local museum. The date is also depicted at the City Tower, the landmark of Enns.

Austria - Linz an der Donau - Brucknerhaus

Sent by Patrik from Straßwalchen in Austria. This postcard shows Brucknerhaus, a musician hall in Linz, named after famous composer Anton Bruckner.

This is from Wikipedia : Brucknerhaus is a festival and congress centre in Linz, Austria, named after the Austrian composer Anton Bruckner, home for the Ars Electronica festival and Brucknerfest. Built from 1969 to 1973. Opened on 23 March 1974. Holds about 200 performances per year, with about 180,000 of total audience.

Brucknerhaus has 3 main halls:

Large or Brucknersaal (named after Anton Bruckner): 1,420 seats, standing room for 150
Middle or Stiftersaal (named after Adalbert Stifter): 352 seats, standing room for 40
Small or Keplersaal (named after Johannes Kepler): 100–150 seats

Austria - Linz an der Donau

Many views of places in Linz, Austria.
Top from left : Donaulände, Alstadt, Pöstlingberg-Bahn, and Wallfahrtskirche am Pöstlingberg.
Middle from left : Landstraße, Neptun-Brunnen, Pfarrgasse, and Hauptplatz.
Bottom from left : Pfarrkirche, Friedrichstor (Schloß), Barocke Dreifaltigkeissäule, and Landhaushof.

Sent by Patrik from Straßwalchen in Austria.