Der Arlinger Steinhag - Trockensteinmauer

The Arlinger Steinwall (stone wall) was first documented as a boundary wall approximately 700 years ago in a "Urbar" (tax book) of Kremsmünster Abbey. It separates the grazing area between Arlingalm and Brandtneralm on the Großer Pyhrgas in Spital am Pyhrn, near the provincial border with Styria. Since 2016, parts of the Arlinger Steinhag have been renewed with volunteers from the Austrian Alpine Club under DI Ellmauer as part of Alm (mountain pasture) maintenance operations. Typical applications of dry stone walls in alpine areas can be seen in the pictures. The Old High German term "Hag" means enclosure, fence, hedge. "Wall" refers to a wall – English "wall" – an embankment or defensive structure. The terms have retained their meaning in the language of mountain farmers to this day with "hagern und frieden" for fencing work and "Waller" for upturned root plates: In the Middle Ages, "Klaubsteinmauern" (stone walls built from collected stones) along roads or property boundaries between Almen or mountain farms gained great importance. Many dry stone walls in disused, overgrown vineyards or abandoned Almen are now left to decay. Since 2003, this ancient craft has experienced a strong revival in Austria. The school Trockensteinmauern.Austria, led by Rainer Vogler from the Krems Viticulture School, organizes courses and projects. These range from walls and stairs to stone houses, pointed arches, and bridges. In 2021, UNESCO honored the cultural-historical value of the craft: dry stone walling was included in the national register as intangible cultural heritage.

Opening hours & season

• 02.06.2023 – 02.06.2070daily00:00–23:59