Castles, Gothic architecture and old crafts

The culture of the Mühlviertel reflects the life of the people in the granite hills north of the Danube. The traditions of traditional craftsmanship play just as important a role here as the wealth of ideas with which clever minds wrested progress from the harsh natural environment.

A prominent example of this is the Schwarzenberg alluvial canal in the Bohemian Forest. The ingenious system of locks and canals used to transport timber from the forests across the Central European watershed towards Vienna can still be seen in the mountain ranges today. The horse-drawn railway from Linz to Budweis was a similar masterpiece of old Austrian engineering. 500 metres of reconstructed track in Rainbach are a worthy monument to the first railway on the European continent. Highlights of a centuries-long development in which people wrested their habitat from the forest and granite piece by piece.

A lasting symbol of this period is the Schlägl Abbeywhich already bears the clearing in its name. Castles and ruins rise up out of the woods and hills as centres of support from the Middle Ages: Prandegg, Ruttenstein or Piberstein are just a few of many. Reichenstein Castle is home to the Upper Austrian Castle Museum. Numerous monuments worth seeing in the Mühlviertel date back to the Gothic period, from the St Catherine's Minster in medieval Freistadt to the Kefermarkt winged altar.

Many of the small museums in the Mühlviertel are dedicated to crafts and the daily life of the people. The Textile Culture Haslach and the Dyeing Museum Gutau keep the tradition of linen weaving in the Mühlviertel alive. The production and processing of glass was just as widespread here as the Ulrichsberg Glass Museum and the Hinterglasmuseum Sandl The school museum in Bad Leonfelden brings the school of our ancestors back to life. In between, there is always a place for curiosities. The "villa rich in senses" in Rohrbach-Berg lives up to its name and impressively demonstrates how easily our senses can be misled. And the Mechanical Sound Factory in Haslach an der Mühl is an impressive collection of unusual music automatons.