Scene: Admont Abbey
At eight sites in Styria, meaningful medieval texts are presented in a vivid and innovative way – one of them is located in Admont and guides visitors 500 metres around the Upper Styrian abbey.
Styrian literature trails from the Middle Ages
3D objects
Along the way, you will find five spectacular 3D objects on which a classic of medieval German-language medical literature is presented, namely, excerpts from the 15th-century manuscript of Bartholomäus of Admont.
The head of the project is Prof. Dr Wernfried Hofmeister from the Institute of German Studies at the University of Graz. Hofmeister: "These eight sites were deliberately chosen because medieval texts were once collected or created in these locations. Monasteries have always been places people have turned to when they didn't know what to do!
In the Admont Abbey Library, we found treasures from a medieval collection of medical literature – namely, by Bartholomäus of Admont."
Story stops
Parts of this valuable medieval work are now recalled along a trail that is easy to walk. At the five story stops, these healing texts are presented in a vivid and innovative way. The QR code at the last stop, which can be used to access an audio text, provides added value of a multimedia nature. Pictures from valuable manuscripts illustrate the teachings of Bartholomew, such as recipes to combat toothache. Bartholomew was a bestseller in the Middle Ages, and his literature provided practical benefit in people's lives. The project team has now tried to make the breadth of his medical knowledge understandable in the Literature Trail.
The Styrian Literature Trails, with their eight stops, together form a unique network throughout Europe and are safeguarded for the next five to ten years by the university association "Styrian Literature Trails of the Middle Ages".
