Valcastiel castle ruins
| Valcastiel castle ruins | ||
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 Castle ruins 2016 |
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| Alternative name (s): | Valkastiel, Montafon Castle (unsure!) | |
| Creation time : | around 1120/40 | |
| Castle type : | Hilltop castle | |
| Conservation status: | ruin | |
| Place: | Vandans | |
| Geographical location | 47 ° 5 '59 " N , 9 ° 50' 25" E | |
| Height: | 1014 m above sea level A. | |
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The castle ruin Valcastiel (also Valkastiel ) is the ruin of a medieval hilltop castle near Vandans in the Austrian state of Vorarlberg .
location
Above the village of Vandans lies the Valcastieltobel with the Mustergielbach between the Geißberg and the Fahrengrat. The ruin stands near the western end of a sharp rock ridge that rises very ruggedly between the Mustergielbach in the south and a side branch of the Valkastieltobel in the north that goes up to the Vandanser Steinwand . It can be reached from Vandans via a marked hiking trail, mostly on a forest road, which leads to the foot of the ridge. The last part leads over steep wooden steps and a path secured with wire ropes. Shortly before reaching the rock spur, as the bridge has broken away, the Mustergielbach has to be crossed, which can be difficult when the water is strong. A simple via ferrata begins from the ruins, which leads up the rock spur about 100 meters in altitude, and sometimes over a very sharp ridge. At the end of the ridge there is a rope bridge and several via ferratas for the descent.
history
Not much is known about the history of this extremely exposed ruin.
For a long time it was assumed that Montafon Castle, mentioned in 1391 and documented in archives , was probably destroyed in 1405 in the Appenzell War. According to other findings, however, the Montafon Castle does not refer to a building, but is to be regarded as a medieval rulership designation.
investment
The ruin consists of two systems. The medieval remains indicate a chapel-like structure and show the remains of a tower's foundation:
- At the lower end of the rock spur at about 950 m above sea level, wall remains with a well-preserved arched window are preserved today.
- On top of the spur, a presumable tower foundation measuring approximately 4 × 3.5 meters was uncovered.
The complex was restored in 1926 and archaeologically examined by Karsten Wink in 2002/03. The investigated remains of the wall were dated to a period around 1120/40 and are therefore considered to be the oldest medieval remains in Vorarlberg.
View from the approach path to the rock spur with the arched window of the ruin about in the middle of the picture.
Vandanser Steinwand, seen from the Bartholomäberg Church, with the approximate location of the Valkastiel ruins (arrow)
View from the Kleine Valkastiel to the rock spur with the ruins (see annotations)
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literature
- Alois Niederstätter : The Vorarlberg castles . Universitätsverlag Wagner, Innsbruck 2017, ISBN 978-3-7030-0953-2 , p. 188.
- Karsten Wink (Ed.): Excavations in the Montafon, Diebschlössle and Valkastiel. Heimatschutzverein Montafon , Schruns 2005, ISBN 3-902225-16-5 .
- Vandans. Castle ruins. In: The art monuments of Austria: Vorarlberg. (= DEHIO manual ). Edited by the Federal Monuments Office. Verlag Anton Schroll & Co, Vienna 1983, ISBN 3-7031-0585-2 , p. 400 f.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Krista Vonbank: Grenzland: Stories from the Montafon. Novum-Verlag, Vienna et al. 2006, ISBN 3-902514-56-6 .
- ↑ a b vogis.cnv.at
- ↑ Vandans - Valkastiel ruins • Downhillhoppers. Retrieved January 12, 2020 .
- ↑ The Montafon in the Middle Ages - castle / palace.
- ↑ Alois Niederstätter : News from the "dark" Middle Ages. In: Verba volant. No. 8, 2008. ( vorarlberg.at ( Memento from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ), PDF; 66 kB)
- ^ Andreas Rudigier : Montafon - A small cultural-historical guide. Heimatschutzverein Montafon, Schruns 2009, ISBN 978-3-902225-36-8 .