Central Area, Vienna Innere Stadt
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A popular pedestrian precinct in front of St Stephen's Cathedral, forms the central point of the inner city. The whole area was redesigned after the construction of the Underground, when a Romanesque chapel forming part of an old cemetary was also brought to light; under the basement (used as a charnel house) lay a further subterranean vault, the Chapel of St Virgil. Some interesting houses surround the Stephansplatz, such as the Domherrenhof (Canon's Residence) at No. 5 and the Erzbischöfliches Palais (Archbishop's Palace) at No. 7.
Central Area Map
Related Attractions
Clock Museum
The Clock Museum is nestled within the Harpist's House, one of the oldest establishments in Vienna. Spread across three floors, the Museum showcases a wide range of clocks dating from the 15th century onwards.
Kärtner Strasse
Located between Stephansplatz and the Staatsoper, Kärtner Strasse is a well known shopping district with all kinds of shops and restaurants.
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Hoher Markt Square
Located on the border of the textile district is the Hoher Markt Square, the oldest in square in the city. The square features a charming Anker Clock which plays music.
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Hotel Sacher
Vienna's most famous old-world hotel, the Sacher, still preserves its style and quality, with silk tablecloths, Biedermeier furniture
Griechenbeisl (inn)
This historic inn with the figure of "lieber Augustin" on the facade gives rise to the story that some anonymous ballad singer wrote the mocking song "Lieber Augustin" during the plague in 1679 having survived spending the night drunk in the plague grave. In the 15th C. it was called "Zum roten Dach" becoming "Griechenbeisl" in the 18th C. Among the many famous persons to frequent the inn were Wagner, Beethoven, Schubert, Strauss, Brahms, Waldmüller, Grillparzer, Nestroy, Schwind and Count Zeppelin. It has been proved that Mark Twain wrote "The Million Pound Note" in a room at Griechenbeisl. The walls of the Mark Twain Room are completely covered with the autographs of famous artists.
Austrian Theater Museum
With over 1.5 million items on exhibit, the Austrian Theater Museum in Vienna features everything from stage models and posters to costumes and props.
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Stock-im-Eisen-Platz (Square)
Stock-im-Eisen-Platz is a square next to Stephansplatz and leading directly into Kärnter Strasse. It takes its curious name from a tree
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Blutgasse District
The Blutgasse District, just behind St Stephen's Dom is one of the oldest and most interesting parts of the city. The medieval houses, forming a complex of seven old buildings (others include Fähnrichshof Nos. 3-9), were restored and improved in 1965 in exemplary historical fashion. Where lovers of Schubert used to meet in the cafe whose name was altered to "Zur lustigen Blunze", there are now dwellings and artists' studios. The name "Blutgasse" (Blood Lane) is without historical warrant. According to legend, however, when the French Chivalric Order of Knights Templar was dissolved here, so many templars were slain that the narrow lane ran with their blood.The Blutgasse District also has one of Vienna's special architectural features: the "Durchhäuser" (passage houses). The passages lead through one or more courtyards to the next street, passing from Blutgasse through picturesque galleried courtyards (the Viennese "Pawlatsch") into Fährichshof and further into Singerstrasse.
Beethoven and Stifter Museum
Beethoven came to reside here several times in the period between 1804 and 1815. The house was owned by Beethoven's life-long friend Johann Baptist von Pasqualati. Tradition has it that whenever Beethoven moved out Pasqualati stated publicly "The house is not for rent; Beethoven will be back". It was here that the composer wrote his Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, his Fourth Piano Concerto, the "Leonora" overtures and the opera "Fidelio". Although the memorial rooms are not exactly those which Beethoven occupied they are in close proximity. On display are furniture and articles used by the composer, pictures such as Mähler's portrait of Beethoven painted in 1901, drawings, lithographs and music. The Adalbert Stifter Museum has also been housed here since 1979. On show are manuscripts and first editions by the author as well more than half the surviving pictures and landscapes which he painted.
Winter Palace of Prince Eugene
Prince Eugene's town mansion has been occupied by the Ministry of Finance since 1848. There was almost an architectural tragedy when the conqueror of the Turks decided to change architects while construction was in progress. J. B. Fischer von Erlach was in charge from 1695 to 1698, but he was replaced by J. L. von Hildebrandt from 1702 to 1724. Prince Eugene died here in 1736 without receiving the final respects to which he was entitled. Emperor Charles VI was not present at his funeral, having gone to Laxenburg the day before "to pass the time". Prince Eugene's heiress, Anna Victoria of Savoy-Soissons, squandered the inheritance in a short while. In the end Maria Theresa purchased the palace for the State in 1752. Visitors are allowed only into the vestibule with the Hercules Fountain and the famous ceremonial staircase.
Mozart Memorial Rooms
Figarohaus stands on Schulerstrasse which leads out of Stephansplatz. For three years, from 1784 to 1787, Mozart lived here with his wife and son on the first floor of this typical Old Viennese house near St Stephen's Cathedral. These were his happiest years, and it was here that he wrote "The Marriage of Figaro". For a short while Beethoven was his pupil and it was while he was resident here that Mozart was appointed Imperial Chamber Composer. Mozart's rooms in what was then called "Camesina House" have been set out as a permanent memorial. Visitors can see the room (with a fine stucco ceiling) where Mozart worked, pictures and prints, figurines and the first German libretto of the "Marriage of Figaro". The house where he died, Rauhensteingasse 8, no longer exists, his grave is in St Marx Cemetery.
Basiliskenhaus
The Basiliskenhaus is also called the "House with the Red Cross", it is known to have existed as early as 1212. It is one of the oldest houses in Vienna. It was damaged by bombing in 1944, and has been restored in 16th C. style. There is a sandstone figure of a basilisk in a niche in the second story of the facade. Legend has it that a monster - half hen, half toad - hatched from an egg, lived in a deep well and made people ill with its poisonous breath or killed them by looking at them. One day an apprentice baker in love with a pretty baker's daughter took heart and bravely held a mirror up to the monster, which was so shocked at its appearance that it burst and turned to pieces of stone.
Collection of Popular Religious Art
The Collection of Popular Religious Art in Vienna is housed in the former Ursuline Convent. It is an offshoot of the Museum für Volkskunde. In its four rooms are exhibited examples of religious popular art from the 17th to the 19th C. Room I: Domestic altars, pictures on glass, wooden sculpture and wax figurines. Room II: The old convent pharmacy, with original furniture and equipment. A painting depicts Christ as the Apothecary. Room III: This room is devoted to the cult of the Virgin. All the Marian pilgrimage centers are marked on maps. Room IV: Material concerned with popular saints.
Salvator Chapel
The Salvator Chapel was founded in 1301 by Otto Haymo (Heimo), a famous conspirator. It formed part of the house which the authorities took over after the failure of the rebellion against Frederick the Fair and converted into the Altes Rathaus. On October 10, 1871 the church passed into the possession of the Old Catholics. After sustaining severe damage in the Second World War it was fully restored in 1972-73. The magnificent Renaissance door, dating from 1520 and one of the few Renaissance works in Vienna, is especially noteworthy. The statues of knights are copies; the originals are in the Historisches Museum der Stadt Wien.
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Schönlaterngasse
Schönlaterngasse, the winding lane in the oldest district of the inner city, takes its name from "The House with the Fine Lantern", which was built here in 1680. The original "fine lantern" is now on display in the Historisches Museum, a copy having been placed on No. 6 Schönlaterngasse in 1971. On this street the houses of the bourgeoisie and merchants are basically medieval with Baroque facades.The Heiligkreuzhof and the Basilikenhaus and the old Jesuit House (No. 11), where the painter Kupelweiser lived, should be noted.
Stanislaus-Kostka-Kapelle
This chapel in the courtyard of the Jesuit presbytery is decorated in gold and silver. Until 1582 the chapel was a single room in the house called "Zur goldenen Schlange" (The Golden Snake), where the Polish Jesuit Stanislaus Kostka lived between 1564 and 1567. After the occurrence of two miracles the room was converted into a chapel and given rich stucco ornamentation in 1742 in memory of Stanislaus Kostka who was canonized in 1726. The altar- piece "St Stanislaus Kostka taking Communion with the Angels" was painted by Franz Anton Stecher c. 1840.
Zum Grünen Anker Restaurant
An Italian aroma hangs over the "Grünen Anker", for this restaurant has specialized in Italian cuisine since 1820. It was a favorite meeting-place of Schubert and his friends, and Grillparzer was also a regular customer. Close by the Grüner Anker stands the "Kipfelhaus" (the Croissant House) at No. 8 Grünargergasse. It was here that this famous Viennese delicacy came into being, for the very first croissant was baked here in 1683, probably as a joke at the expense of the Turkish crescent moon symbol.
Small Bishop's Palace
The former Small Bishop's Palace which later became the "Haus zum roten Kreuz" (House with the Red Cross) dates, in part, from the 15th C. Matthias Gerl gave it a new facade in 1761. The Madonna relief in a pretty Roccoco frame with Turkish trophies on the wall is particularly noteworthy. The house belonged to Franz Georg Kolschitzky (d. 1694) who according to legend had set up the first Viennese coffee house here.
Stock Exchange
The Weiner Borse is the AustrianStock Exchange, located in a late 19th Century brick building that is worth seeing simply for the architecture. It is also home to a pleasant restaurant called Hansen.
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Natural History Museum
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