Messner Mountain Museum Juval

Perched on a hill in the splendid Val Venosta, Castel Juval houses the museum that Reinhold Messner wanted to dedicate to the “myth” of the mountain. For many peoples around the world the mountain is sacred, from Olympus to Ararat, from Sinai to Kailash, from Fujiama in Japan to Ayers Rock in Australia. The museum houses a collection of paintings with views of the great sacred mountains, a precious collection of Tibetan relics and masks from the five continents, the Tantra room and, in the basement, the equipment used by Reinhold Messner in his expeditions. Near the museum, beautiful and exciting, you can visit the sloping vineyards of the Unterortl farm and the Schlosswirt Juval restaurant which serves typical dishes.

Built by Hugo von Montalban in 1278, Juval Castle stands on a prehistoric site. From 1368 it belonged to the lords of Starkenberg. Numerous changes of ownership followed until it was bought by the Sinkmoser family in 1540, when it reached its maximum splendor. The property then passed to the Hendl family who in 1813 sold it to the farmer Josef Blaas. Subsequently, the castle fell into disrepair. In 1913 Juval was bought by the Dutchman William Rowland who restored it in an exemplary way. In the years of the Second World War, a new phase of abandonment began.
With the arrival of Reinhold Messner in 1983, Juval comes back to life. Messner has the manor restored preserving the architectural characteristics of the three different construction phases by combining the medieval walls with modern elements and art collections. In addition to being the private home of the Messner family, today the castle is also home to an extraordinary museum that is part of the Messner Mountain Museum circuit.

ph. credit: Georg Tappeiner - Magdalena Messner - Matthias Leidgschwendner - Gerhard Hagen