Graz Styrian Armory The
Landeszeughaus originally was the central weapons depot of the
Duchy of Styria during the
Ottoman Wars. It is the only remaining
armory of its type in the world. The installation remained largely unchanged for nearly 400 years and provides the atmosphere of an authentic armory of the 17th century. 32,000 exhibits are housed in the collection; suits of armor, coats of mail, helmets, melee weapons, firearms and other engines of war. The military history of Styria is illustrated with its own exhibition in the cannon hall.
Folkloric Museum The Folkloric Museum (Volkskundemuseum) houses the oldest and most extensive collection of
folkloric and
folk culture objects in
Styria. It was opened in 1913, and is located in a former
Capuchin monastery just inside Graz's only remaining
Renaissance city-gate, the
Paulustor (St. Paul's Gate), erected under
Ferdinand II. The library of
folklore contains over 14,000 individual volumes as well as an archive of original material and over 20,000 slides and historic photographs documenting the life of rural Styria. The exhibits offer insights into the rural culture and lifestyle of pre-industrial Styria. The collection emphasizes the life, fashion and beliefs of the Styrian people, showing the social and cultural relations between the person and the objects left behind. Specific features of the collection are the original smoking room and the
Traditional Garments Hall (Trachtensaal). The complex also includes the
Antoniuskirche (St. Anthony's Church) with original paintings by
Giovanni Pietro de Pomis and
Hans Adam Weissenkircher, where traditional "Styrian Shepherds' and Crib Songs" are performed before Christmas along with new compositions by local composers.
History Museum The Styrian Treasury holds the
cultural history collection of the Joanneum and encompasses around 35,000 objects from all areas of the aesthetically informed way of life – from the
Middle Ages up to the present-day: They bear witness to
Styrian history and offer examples of life among Styrian royalty and nobility as well as the domestic life of the aristocracy and middle-class; artisans' crafts in metal, wood, ivory, ceramic, glass and textiles as well as collections of wrought iron objects,
traditional garments and musical instruments are presented. The Styrian ducal hat, the magnificent
coach of
Emperor Frederick III and a stone coat of arms from the
Graz Castle count among the most significant objects in the collection. To coincide with the Joanneum's bicentennial year, the cultural history collection opened the History Museum in summer 2011 in the former Herberstein city palace in Sackstrasse and presents a newly designed permanent exhibition expanded by special exhibitions. The History Museum is housed in the former
Herberstein Palace and, in addition to the collection and temporary exhibitions, also opens the
Baroque staterooms to visitors. The Herberstein Palace was originally renovated into a Baroque city palace for the
Princes of Eggenberg by Austrian architect
Joseph Hueber. The palace passed into the possession of a branch of the Herberstein family in 1774 after the extinction of the male line of Eggenberg heirs.
Joanneum Quarter The Joanneum Quarter () includes the original Joanneum building on the Raubergasse as well as the Neutorgasse building and the Styrian Provincial Library. A grand entrance provides access to all three buildings. Between the three buildings there is a three-story deep, subterranean depot for the library's collections.
New Gallery The New Gallery (Neue Galerie) originated in 1941 with the division of the Provincial Art Gallery, founded in 1811 as part of the Joanneum, into the Old Gallery (Alte Galerie) – comprising
Medieval to
Baroque artworks up to 1800 – and the New Gallery (Neue Galerie) – comprising works beginning with
Neoclassicism,
Romanticism,
Realism and
Modern art. The museum has an extensive collection of pedagogic art from the 19th and 20th centuries featuring works by Austrian artists including
Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller,
Egon Schiele,
Gustav Klimt,
Maria Lassnig and
Arnulf Rainer as well as international artists such as
Marcel Duchamp,
Robert Rauschenberg and
Fred Sandback. The gallery focuses on procuring and exhibiting an ever-growing collection of
contemporary art. The New Gallery houses an extensive collection of some 40,000 graphics as well as photographs, film and video collections. Like the Styrian Arts Hall (Halle für Kunst Steiermark, formerly Künstlerhaus) and the
Graz Museum of Contemporary Art (Kunsthaus Graz), the New Gallery provides a venue for contemporary artists, both local and international, with a variety of temporary exhibitions. Among these contemporary artists, controversial Styrian artist
Günter Brus was to have his own permanent exhibition space, called the
Bruseum, in the newly renovated "Neutorgasse" building in the Joanneum Quarter.
Multimedia collections The
multimedia collections (formerly known as the Picture and Tone Archives) were established in 1960 to collect photographic, film and audio material relating to
Styria for research and educational purposes and to make these materials available to the general public. The collection presently consists of more than 2.5 million photographs, tens of thousands of
audio recordings and thousands of films that document the development of the
Bundesland of Styria from the dawn of the era of photography, film and audio recording.
Museum of nature and science In 2009 the scientific departments of the Joanneum moved to the Center for Natural History in the
Andritz district of
Graz. This center cares for the collections and continues scientific research with contemporary means. Steeped in tradition, these departments form the core of the original Joanneum established by
Archduke Johann. It offers
interdisciplinary exhibitions of
botany,
zoology, geology and
paleontology, and
mineralogy.
CoSA - Center of Science Activities The Center of Science Activities (CoSA) is a
science center in the natural history museum of the
Graz Joanneumsviertel, in which technology and natural sciences are taught in a low-threshold way. It was opened in 2019 after a four-year planning phase as a joint project of the Graz Children's Museum FRida & freD and the Universalmuseum Joanneum.
Botany Ferns, flowering plants, mushrooms and mosses–dried, pressed, stretched and packed in paper capsules. The core of the botanical collection consists of more than half a million well-preserved plants. Special collections of fruits and seeds as well as models of fruits and an extensive
xylotheque (library of woods) complement the
herbarium, which shows a comprehensive archive of
Styrian
flora and the base for research projects on local vegetation.
Franz Unger did some of his early teaching and research in this department while he resided in Graz.
Zoology The collection encompasses about 850,000 specimens typical of their respective habitats.
Vertebrates take up the largest portion of the collection. Examples from other regions—from the seashores to the original
fauna of Australia—round-out the collection inventory. The primary focuses of the scientific collections are, among other things, insects and
mollusks among the
invertebrate animals as well as skeletons and bird's eggs among the
vertebrates.
Geology and paleontology 500 million years Styrian history are gathered here: Fossilized remains of earlier living beings reveal information about
ice ages,
tropical seas, ancient forests and marshes. Beside the
mammoths and
mastodons, the
cave bears and the
giant deer,
corals,
mussels and fish are found among the core specimens of the collection. Since 1998 the department of Geology and Paleontology has organized fossil digs with schools.
Mineralogy As with the
coin cabinet collection, the mineralogical collection traces its origin to the private collection of
Archduke Johann, which encompassed several thousand pieces at that time. Today the inventory has grown to about 80,000 specimens. The collection presents minerals from across the world as well as a
Styrian regional collection. The mineralogy department of the Joanneum was where
Friedrich Mohs developed the
Mohs scale of mineral hardness which remains authoritative. He was the first curator of the Joanneum.
Eggenberg Palace Staterooms and gardens Eggenberg Palace (Schloss Eggenberg) was added to the registry of the
Graz historic city centre as a UNESCO
World Heritage Site in 2010.
Eggenberg Palace is the most significant
palace ensemble in
Styria and is surrounded by an extensive, scenic garden. The palace, designed by court architect
Giovanni Pietro de Pomis, according to the inspiration of the Spanish
El Escorial, is both an opulent residence intended to convey the wealth, might and status of owner-builder
Hans Ulrich von Eggenberg as well as a complex
allegory of the
cosmos. Central to the multifaceted conception are an ensemble of historic interior rooms. The cycle of 24 staterooms with original accouterments and period furnishings from the 17th and 18th centuries counts among the most significant ensembles of historic interiors in Austria. The climax of this
piano nobile is the
Planetary Room, which owes its name to the cycle of ceiling and wall paintings (completed in 1685) that adorn it, by court painter
Hans Adam Weissenkircher. His elegant melding of
astrological and
hermetic images,
numerology and family mythology into a complicated allegory of the "Golden Age" of the
House of Eggenberg is counted among the most important and impressive systems of early
Baroque room-art in Central Europe. Nine hectares of gardens, mostly overgrown and lost through decades of neglect by the end of
World War II, were restored or reconstructed as a living monument to
Romanticism and bear the influence of the last gardener to own the palace, Jérôme Count Herberstein. In the early 19th century, Count Herberstein had the palace grounds transformed into a picturesque
English garden.
Old Gallery (Alte Galerie) , c. 1535 The collections of the Old Gallery contain works by
old masters of European art from the
Middle Ages through the 18th century. The 22-room show collection in
Eggenberg Palace follows a thematic design by subject matter. Objects of
Romanesque art, such as the "St. Nicholas Sacristy Door",
Gothic art, including the
St. Lambrecht Votive Altarpiece, the "Admont Madonna" and the "Death Portrait of
Maximilian I" or a portrait of his first wife
Mary, Duchess of Burgundy and the Greater and Lesser Miracle Altars of
Mariazell are among the collection of
medieval art. Beginning with the
Renaissance and going through
Mannerism to the late
Baroque, works by
Lucas Cranach the Elder,
Dosso Dossi,
Sofonisba Anguissola,
Bartholomeus Spranger,
Pieter Brueghel the Younger,
Martin Johann Schmidt and
Angelica Kauffman are on display in the
early modern period collection. The inventory of the
printroom of the Alte Galerie Graz is extensive and contains hand drawings and
print graphics from 1500 till the end of the 18th century. Among these are extensive works by
Rembrandt,
Albrecht Dürer and
Giambattista Piranesi.
Coin cabinet The Coin
Cabinet also traces its origin to the private collection of
Archduke Johann. With over 70,000 objects, it is currently the second largest, public coin collection in Austria. Through a combination of state-of-the-art technology and historical items, the coins, currency and equipment related to minting trace the history of regional coin circulation and minting from the
prehistoric era to the
eurozone. Among the most significant pieces are coins from finds in and around
Styria that were in circulation at the time of the
Roman Empire. Additionally, Friesacher and Grazer
Pfennigs from the
Middle Ages and coins and medallions from the
Inner Austrian mints in
Graz,
Klagenfurt and
St. Veit an der Glan as well as from other lands of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire are on display. The collection traces the history of coin mintage and names from around the world with prehistoric
Celtic coins from the region, shells, early forms of paper currency and the euro in addition to international coins of historic significance minted in Africa, the US, and by the
Dutch East India Company among others. The permanent collection, with an additional room for temporary exhibitions, is fittingly situated in the oldest portion of palace dating to the late
Middle Ages and once belonging to
Balthasar Eggenberger, mint master and financier to
Emperor Frederick III in the early days of
Mercantilism.
Archaeology Museum and Lapidarium The Archaeology museum and lapidarium is Located adjacent to the
Planetary Garden and
Lapidarium at Schloss Eggenberg. It hosts an array of over 1200 objects from past social environments. The second largest archaeological collection of Austria unites evidence of human existence from "
Styrian"
prehistory with findings from
Classical Antiquity, the
Ancient Near East and
Ancient Egypt. A unique attraction is the
Cult Wagon of Strettweg, found among
grave goods from the
Hallstatt culture.It underwent an extensive restoration. One of the most significant
Roman stonemasonry collections of the eastern
Alps is in the adjacent
Lapidarium: 96 stones, including gravestones, monuments, medallions and round sculptures, three large remnants of
mosaic floors as well as a prominent exhibit, the nearly three meter high grave
stele of L. Cantius. Akin to the archaeology museum is the
Roman Museum of
Flavia Solva near the southern Styrian town of
Wagna. (see below)
Museumsakademie Joanneum The Museumsakademie Joanneum encourages further education, training and research in
museology,
museum planning,
interpretive planning,
exhibit design and museum management..It is headquartered in one of the Eggenberg garden houses and works with an international network of museums and local institutions including the
University of Graz and the
Graz University of Technology, It provides a platform and resources for discussions with international researchers in museology and museological theory in order to promote the continuing development of both the Joanneum and of museological practices and research around the world.
Exhibition houses Graz Museum of Contemporary Art (Kunsthaus Graz) The Museum of Contemporary Art presents architecture, design, new media, CGI, film and photography under one roof. The facility was dubbed "Friendly Alien" by its designers Peter Cook and Colin Fournier. It offers spectacular architecture and exhibitions by international, contemporary artists from the late 20th century onwards. A special highlight of this
blob architecture building is the "Needle": a glass viewing platform that looks out across the
river Mur towards the Graz city centre and the
Castle Hill (Schlossberg). The BIX façade on the eastern (Mur) face of the
KHG serves as an "urban screen" with 925 programmable fluorescent lamps that display messages and moving patterns of light on the surroundings. The Graz Museum of Contemporary Art doesn't use an English name for itself but uses the name
Kunsthaus Graz in all its English communications.
Austrian Sculpture Park More than 60 sculptures are embedded in a seven-hectare park with rose mounds, lotus blossom ponds and labyrinths on the southern outskirts of Graz. Since its founding in 2003, the Austrian Sculpture Park offers visitors a scenic overview of—mainly Austrian, but also international—contemporary sculpture and sculptural art as well as the rolling gardens of Swiss
landscape architect Dieter Kienast. In 2008 the collection was extended by the donation of the
Painting to Hammer a Nail in / Cross Version by artist
Yoko Ono.
Throughout Styria Roman Museum Flavia Solva is the most significant
Roman era find in modern-day
Styria. It is located near a hill on the edge of the town of
Wagna, overlooking the Mur River. The town developed near an existing settlement of
Celts centered on the nearby hill, the Frauenberg near
Leibnitz. It gained full status as a Roman city by grant of a municipal charter by
Vespasian in 70 AD. The settlement expanded and the Celtic populations adopted Roman ways and technology. It offers a viewing platform and showroom built overlooking excavated Roman ruins. This museum offers visitors a glimpse into the everyday life, worship, and death cults of what was once the most cultured town of the
Roman province of
Noricum.
Schloss Trautenfels The
Baroque palace of
Schloss Trautenfels is situated at the foot of the Grimming on a protruding cliff in the municipality
Pürgg-Trautenfels. In the
Middle Ages the cliff protrusion held a small damn on the Enns River until the 16th century. In 1664 the area was bought by the Styrian provincial governor, Count Siegmund Friedrich von Trauttmansdorff and subsequently converted and expanded by him into an early
Baroque residence that bears his name. The staterooms feature both
Renaissance and
Baroque frescoes and paintings as well as the Antler Room of the Counts of Lemberg, and the stunning Marble Hall all of which are open to visitors.
Regional Landscape and Folkloristic Museum Beginning in the 1950s a concerted effort was made to collect objects relating to the natural and cultural history of the Ennstal region of Upper Styria and the Styrian
Salzkammergut. Both the splendor of the landscape and the palace itself are on display. Objects of geological interest as well as the rural domestic life of the region are on display. The exhibition also displays exhibits recollecting the historic transitions and their impact on the people, such as the
Reformation and
Counter-Reformation. The permanent show collection presents about 1000 exhibits relating to both the land and the people over the course of history in of the
Ennstal Valley as well as the
Ausseerland from the Middle Ages to the early modern era.
Schloss Stainz Schloss Stainz is a former
Augustinian Canons Regular monastery purchased by
Archduke Johann in 1840 and remains in the estate of his heirs, the Counts of Meran. Various rooms, terraces and arcades are available to rent for private functions. The former monastery houses two collections:
Hunting Museum The design of this exhibition treats the hunt as a historical, sociological and philosophical-ethical phenomenon. It offers the visitor a chance to examine the connections of hunting, ecology and nature. The
interdisciplinary approach to this exhibition combines
Baroque animal trophies, historical tools and weapons, paintings and artwork with state-of-the-art technology and museum design to illustrate the development of the hunt from the
Stone Age through
Roman times up to the time of nobles and the early days of the middle-class.
Agriculture Museum The main focus of the agriculture collection is to show the rural farming,
husbandry and
forestry techniques prior to the
Industrial Revolution as well as related implements and photographic evidence. Original room furnishings from the 17th and 18th centuries provide a view into the different dimensions of rural life in Styria. The open areas hold a
smithy, a cabbage pit, herb garden, an orchard and a small field to demonstrate various aspects of this
pre-industrial, rural lifestyle. == Bibliography ==