Prigglitz lies high above the Schwarzatal valley, on a sunny terrace above the sea of fog. Art, prehistoric mining and a variety of trails offer different ways to explore the area. When planning your visit, consider what you would like to focus on: exhibitions and archaeological traces, an outdoor tour, or the connection between local history and the landscape.
Art between exhibitions and landscape
Galerie Gut Gasteil presents four contemporary art exhibitions each year. In addition, the exhibition series “Art in the Landscape” is organised every two years, showcasing changing installations in the open-air grounds. The annual exhibitions and the biennial series offer different timings. The sculptor couple Seidl also displays works by international artists on the 16-hectare meadows surrounding Gut Gasteil. This means the focus is on both exhibitions and artworks in the landscape.
Art lovers will find more than just one format: the gallery, the changing installations and the works in the meadows differ in form and setting. You can decide which of these aspects is of particular interest to you during your stay.
Traces of prehistoric mining
Copper was mined and processed in Prigglitz-Gasteil around 3,000 years ago. At the surface, spoil heaps and terrain terraces remain visible from the Late Bronze Age mining settlement; the terraces are up to 15 metres wide. This provides both an approximate time frame and tangible traces in the landscape. Prigglitz is also home to the best-researched prehistoric mine in Lower Austria.
The archaeological history is a focus in its own right, alongside contemporary art. The visible spoil heaps and terraces up to 15 metres wide give the subject a tangible form in the landscape, while copper processing around 3,000 years ago places it in time.
Trails, views and choosing a tour
The WAB Regional Route K reaches Prigglitz via forest paths leading over Silbersberg. Shortly before Prigglitz, the route offers a view across the cultural landscape from Prigglitz to the Rax. These are two distinct points to bear in mind when planning a tour: the trail over Silbersberg and the view across the landscape to the Rax.
The Kapellenrunde is a mountain bike tour starting at the primary school in Prigglitz. The Maagraben Cave lies along the route. The Pottschacher Hütte is also nearby, at an altitude of 914 metres; it can be reached on foot from Prigglitz in about an hour. These details offer different starting points for your choice: a mountain bike tour beginning at the primary school, or an approximately one-hour walk to the hut.
Church and chapel in the village
In the centre of Prigglitz, the three-nave Church of St Nicholas stands on a churchyard plateau that slopes gently to the southeast. Gasteil is home to the Patricius Chapel, a Baroque wayside chapel. Both buildings offer a connection to local history, but each has a different emphasis: the church in the village centre and the chapel as a reminder of the Baroque period.
A place to eat and a concert walk
At the “Päuschen Häuschen” in Prigglitz, you can enjoy breakfast hampers, pulled pork burgers and homemade cakes. The selection brings together breakfast, savoury food and sweets at a named location in the village. “Prigglitz prickelt” is a concert walk, with music performed at various locations. If this event format is a deciding factor for your trip, check the current dates in advance.
You can tailor your stay to the interests you have in the area: art and mining history are two prominent themes, while Route K, the Kapellenrunde and the walk to the Pottschacher Hütte offer different ways to spend time outdoors. The churches and Patricius Chapel add to the cultural attractions, and the “Päuschen Häuschen” offers a specific place to eat. This lets you shape your visit to Prigglitz around the subjects that interest you most.
Discover more destinations: Enzenreith, Klamm, Mönichkirchen, Schwarzau am Steinfeld, Payerbach, Grimmenstein, Otterthal, Breitenau.
For the overview of the wider area: Neunkirchen.
