Knife Museum Steinbach an der Steyr

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The knife museum

The knife museum in Steinbach an der Steyr shows the history of knife makers and blade smiths.

It was founded by the "Verein Messerermuseum" and established as a permanent exhibition in 1998 as part of the decentralized Upper Austrian provincial exhibition Land der Hämmer - Heimat Eisenwurzen . It shows the craft of knife and blade smiths, their importance for the population and regional settlement development.

In the front building of the former knife factory Franz Pils & Söhne, the following museum concept has been implemented on three floors:

Ground floor: knife production

First floor: the life of the knifers, their customs and associations

Upper floor 2: historical development, knife guild, trade connections, guild and church

history

In the place of the museum building at Hochgasse 17, there used to be a low brick grinder's house, which belonged to the adjacent grinder workshop of the Steinbacher knife trade. The house could be as old as the grinder workshop, which was already documented in writing in 1477 as "Werchstat im Stainpach ob der Pruck". In the oldest picture from 1692, the ground-level brick house on the right of the bridge can be clearly seen, along with the low log cabins of the seven loops with their undershot water wheels upstream. Remnants of sgraffito plaster from the 1st half of the 17th century on the west, north and east sides of the museum building prove that it was built directly on the walls of the old Schleiferhäusel. According to the craft register from 1704, the master messenger and several residents, probably Schleifer, lived in the Schleiferhäusl.

As part of the relief campaign for ironworkers in need, the old dilapidated grinder workshop was demolished in 1892/93 and a modern factory building with a first floor was built in its place. At that time the Schleiferhäusel also got a first floor. On the ground floor, the “Cutlery Cooperative in Steinbach-Grünburg”, founded in 1897/98, set up a forge. In 1910, master knife maker Georg Kerschbaumer had a second floor built on top of the former Schleiferhäusel, which incorporated it into the neighboring factory building. His company existed until 1965. The adjacent knife factory Franz Pils & Söhne leased the ground floor of the current museum in 1933, used it as "Schmiede 2" and finally bought the house in 1956.

On the first floor there were knife workshops, then temporary storage for the goods produced and, from 1960, the works council's office and lounge. The workshop of master knife maker Georg Kerschbaumer was located on the second floor until 1956. The building has been empty since the Pils company went bankrupt in 1967. In 1971, master plumber Anton Pressl bought the building and used it as a branch of his company.

The Steinbach community bought the factory building in 1987 and had its southern part demolished in December 1990 to make space for parking spaces. The remaining two-story factory building stood empty except for one apartment, so active local researchers considered building a knife museum in it. On an exhibition area of ​​200 m² (with staircase and forecourt) there was an opportunity to present the living conditions and working world of the knife makers at the original location.

literature

  • Heinrich Kieweg: Three old legends about the origin of the knife coat of arms . In: Upper Austrian homeland sheets . Volume 44, 1990. State of Upper Austria, Linz 1990, ISSN  0029-7550 , pp. 51-57, online (PDF) in the forum OoeGeschichte.at
  • Heinrich Kieweg: Small monuments of knives and stonemasons in Steinbach an der Steyr In: Upper Austrian homeland sheets . Volume 51, 1997. Province of Upper Austria, Linz 1997, ISSN  0029-7550 , p. 280 ff, online (PDF; 600 kB) in the forum OoeGeschichte.at
  • Heinrich Kieweg (Junior), Heinrich Kieweg (Senior): The honorable craft of knives, sharpeners, blade smiths and grinders in Steinbach an der Steyr. From the beginning to around 1800. In: Upper Austrian homeland sheets . Volume 52.1998. State of Upper Austria, Linz 1998, ISSN  0029-7550 , pp. 77-105, online (PDF; 4 MB) in the forum OoeGeschichte.at
  • Margit Prömer: The world of work and life in Steinbach an der Steyr in the 20th century. The importance of the Pils knife factory for the workers in Steinbach an der Steyr . Thesis. University of Graz, Graz 1993, OBV .
  • Margit Prömer: Knife production in Steinbach an der Steyr. An economic and social history from the beginning to the present . Dissertation. University of Graz, Graz 1999, OBV .

Web links

Commons : Messerermuseum  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 47 ° 58 ′ 17.2 ″  N , 14 ° 16 ′ 0.4 ″  E