Architektur und Kunst

Architektur und Kunst

Schloss Ambras

There is no trace left of the original Ambras castle that was built in the 10th century and then destroyed in 1133. What sits roughly 100 meters above the Inn valley was built in 1563 by two Italian architects at the behest of Archduke Ferdinand II. He ordered his new renaissance castle to be built on top of a fortress that was in the same place as the original. He lived there and used it as his family residence from 1567 to 1595. It then became the seat of power for the counts of Andechs. In 1919 the ownership of the castle was handed over to the Republic of Austria, following the dissolution of the Austria-Hungary empire. Finally, in 1950, the Kunsthistorisches Museum took over the administration of the castle and its collections, after which it received comprehensive restoration throughout the 70s in the Spanish Hall, the Upper Castle residential quarters, and the inner courtyard. In 1974, the Chamber of Art and Wonders was completed. In 1976, the Habsburg Portrait Gallery covering the fifteenth to nineteenth centuries was completed. In 1981, the Armouries was reopened in the Lower Castle.

Now it is one of the most popular tourist destinations of Tyrol, serving as both a beautiful castle and art collection/museum.

The museum

Ambras castle has always had a history closely linked to museums, Ferdinand II is thought to be the inventor of the first museum in Ambras, he would collect all sorts of things from armour and weapons to paintings and sculptures and would then put them on display to show to his guest who came to his castle. He also built one of the most important renaissance halls between 1569 and 1572. The picturesque layout of the 141ft long hall is dominated by the 27 full-length portraits of the princely rulers of the Tyrol

Schloss Ambras is unique in that it has the only renaissance kunstkammer that can still be found in its original place. It is located in the chamber of arts and wonders. Many odd and interesting things can be found within, such as natural wonders (rare, unique and excellent things of nature) as well as precious objects, scientific items, toys, or luxury items of the time. There are also notable works of European art like the portrait of the hairy people or Vlad Dracula

The next rooms to take notice of would be the armories. Ferdinand II would collect the armor of notable people from his time and display them in his "hall of heroes" for people to marvel at. Some of them can still to this day be seen in their original 16th-century displays. Such as the armour of the giant Bartlmä Bon, which can be seen to the left, he stood at a whopping 7'9''

The last things of note to be found within the castle walls can be found in the upper castle. Here you can see the Habsburg portrait gallery, which has 300 portraits in it from the 15th to 19th centuries. there is also the Strasser collection of glass which is among the famous of its kind in the world. The other impressive collection would be that of the gothic sculptures

Essen und Trinken

Essen und Trinken

As we learned last week Austria is a nation that is well known for and prides itself on its tradition and culture. This tradition definitely extends to the topic of food and drink. Austria has many traditional dishes (some of which we'll learn about soon), much like the Italians they are also very particular about how these dishes are prepared.

National dishes

Wiener Schnitzel


The Wiener schnitzel is one of Austria's most famous and stereotypical dishes. It is a thin slice of breaded veal cooked in a pan with a shed load of butter and garnished with a slice of lemon and served with a side of either potato salad or chips (for the kids). It is so important in Austrian culture that by law if something is called a wiener schnitzel it has to be veal, unless otherwise clearly stated. There is a lot of contention about where it comes from but a popular belief is that it was first mentioned in a german cookbook back in 1831. For those wondering national Wiener Schnitzel day is September 9th.



Apfelstrudel

Apfelstrudle or apple strudel is probably the second most stereotypical of Austria's dishes, this time it's a pudding. It is made of a strudel pastry stuffed with grated apples, sugar, cinnamon and bread crumbs. I recently learned that there is apparently great debate of whether it should be served with raisins. I would say no, but I don't like raisins so that's no great surprise. It's then often served with ice cream or whipped cream placed on top.

Sachertorte

Sachertorte is probably Austria's second most famous pudding but better known worldwide (just not associated with Austria). The cake consists of a dense chocolate cake with a thin layer of apricot jam on top, coated in dark chocolate icing on the top and sides. It is traditionally served with unsweetened whipped cream

Recommendations

STIEFTKELLER, Innsbruck

For those of you in or around Innsbruck who want to experience an authentic test of Austrian cuisine, I can recommend giving Stieftkeller, in the center of town just around the corner from the Golden Roof, a try. In my (touristic) opinion they do a nice job of representing a potentially caricaturized traditional Austrian experience. They serve authentic food like the Wiener Schnitzel or Wiener Schnitzel vom Scwein (for those on a budget), Käsespätzle, Knöddel and most other typical Austrian dishes you can think of. You can then pair these dishes with the finest of Austrian beers and wines or if you're feeling like taking it easy you could always have a raddler or a spritzer,  which are beer and lemonade and wine and lemonade respectively. If you don't want any alcohol you could also try an almdudler, which is Austria's most popular herbal lemonade. In fact after coca-cola it is Austria's second most popular soda.

Wiener Schnitzel Recipe

This recipe is from the Guardian (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2014/may/28/how-to-make-the-perfect-wiener-schnitzel)

For this recipe you will need the following ingredients:

2 escalopes of veal
Salt, to season
Pepper, to season
2 eggs
2 tbsp double cream
Flour, to coat
50g dried white breadcrumbs
Vegetable oil, to fry
25g clarified butter or ghee
1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

Put one of the escalopes on a chopping board, cover with greaseproof paper, and beat out as thinly as you can without making holes in it. Season both sides well. Repeat with the other.

Beat the eggs lightly with the cream in a wide, shallow bowl. Put a good handful of flour on a plate, and tip the breadcrumbs on to another plate.

Heat 1/2cm oil in a deep, wide frying pan until a breadcrumb sizzles and quickly browns. While that's heating, dip the escalopes in turn in the flour, egg and lastly the breadcrumbs, making sure they're evenly covered with each layer, but being careful not to press them into the breadcrumbs too hard.

Add the butter to the pan and once foaming, drop in the escalopes (if they're too large, you may have to do them in batches). Cook until golden brown on the bottom, swirling the pan constantly to cascade oil over the top.

Turn over and repeat – once both sides are golden (a matter of minutes), the schnitzel are ready. Blot quickly with kitchen paper and then serve immediately with lemon to squeeze over.