Museum im Wehrturm Perchtoldsdorf

About the museum

The fortified tower, around 60 metres high, is the landmark of Perchtoldsdorf and was built between about 1450 and 1521 as a defence, watch and bell tower. The priest and scholar Thomas Ebendorfer is considered the instigator; the construction costs were borne by the market town, which had grown wealthy through the wine trade. After a fire during the second Turkish siege in 1683, reconstruction took around 30 years; since then the oriels have carried baroque onion-shaped caps.

The market municipality has set up several small museums in the tower. The former Nikolaus Chapel on the ground floor has served since 1973 as a sacred art museum with a baroque crucifixion group, old church banners, the gravestone of Thomas Ebendorfer and a memorial to him. In the former tower keeper's room above, the local history museum opened in 1973; it shows archaeological finds, extracts from documents as well as art and craft objects and, since its redisplay in 2021, also the mechanical movement of the tower clock from 1698.

In 1995 the archaeological department was added on the floor above. It presents excavation results from the eastern part of the municipality and covers the Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age as well as the Roman imperial period and the Migration Period. From the gallery at a height of about 33 metres, the view extends across the Vienna Basin to the Vienna Woods.

Highlights

• Late medieval fortified tower of 1521, landmark of Perchtoldsdorf
• Sacred art museum with crucifixion group and memorial to Thomas Ebendorfer
• Local history in the tower keeper's room with mechanical tower clock movement of 1698
• Archaeological department from the Neolithic to the Migration Period
• Gallery with views of the Vienna Basin and the Vienna Woods

Permanent exhibitions

• Sakralmuseum in der Nikolauskapelle – Church art and commemoration of the priest Thomas Ebendorfer: baroque crucifixion group, historical church banners and the scholar's gravestone.
• Ortsgeschichte in der Türmerstube – Finds, documents as well as art and craft objects tell the story of the town; the movement of the baroque tower clock of 1698 is also on display.
• Archäologisches Museum – Excavation finds from the eastern part of the municipality from the Neolithic through the Bronze and Iron Ages to the Roman period and the Migration Period.

Founded

1973

Operated by

Marktgemeinde Perchtoldsdorf

Admission & discounts

Adults €2, children €0.50 (according to Museumsmanagement Niederösterreich).

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The upper exhibition floors can only be reached via a narrow spiral staircase from the Nikolaus Chapel.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The tower stands on the Marktplatz in the town centre; the entrance is on the west side.

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit