Ruine Steinschloss - Burgen in VR

VR glasses compatible (e.g. Quest 3)

November 30, 2024

Brief History

There is no other castle ruin listed on this website so far that has so much information, plans, reconstructions, literature and archaeological research available. At least not for me. This includes a master's thesis by Ms Katrin Schwarzkogler, which deals intensively with the castle chapel. This work is publicly accessible and can be found in the web links below. The local castle association has printed a brochure, and Richard Pogatschnigg has written a good summary (link below).

Without being exact, the building history can be roughly summarized as follows:

Around 1100 there was a small castle - where the highest part with the keep is today. At that time it was a residential tower with a small house nearby. In at least three construction phases the residential tower became the keep, and gradually other buildings and fortifications were added or rebuilt until around 1650 the large lower castle courtyard received its surrounding walls. The last major reconstruction of the castle.

The owners naturally changed over time - one significant change was the purchase of the castle by the Stift St. Lambrecht. Under the abbots of the abbey, the castle was increasingly transformed into a palace and then into a summer retreat for the lords of the monastery. The castle chapel - dedicated to Saint Catherine - was rebuilt several times, and the abbots resided in the then beautiful chambers of the inner castle in the highest part during their summer holidays.

The very religiously critical Emperor Joseph II dissolved the monastery in 1786. This meant that not only the monastery but also the now Stein Castle – Steinschloss – was temporarily ownerless. The castle fell into disrepair quite quickly as a result, a lightning strike in 1810 caused great damage, the dilapidated castle was plundered and by 1850 it was already a beautiful – but nonetheless – ruin that continued to collapse rapidly. Until around 2000, the castle association took care of its maintenance and renovation.

The complex is fascinating due to its size and the magnificent view. It is connected to the Cave Castle near Pux and Katsch Castle. This is also due to the altitude of 1180 meters, making it the highest castle or ruin in Styria. Today, in contrast to many other castle ruins in Styria, it is very well visited and a popular tourist destination. In the author's childhood, you could be sure that you would usually get there alone if you took the now closed path from Teufenbach to the then overgrown ruin. Today you take the road via Mariahof by car.

Help for the tour

The virtual tour is best experienced in full screen (double-click on the image or click on the button at the bottom right), on a large PC monitor with headphones or speakers. Under the mouse pointer (or when touching the touchscreen) some simple reconstructions of the former building structure become visible. Small details are pointed out using information symbols.
At the top right an orientation plan and/or a map can be activated, on the right edge the music can be muted, a compass can be switched on or off and switched to English.
The information symbol displays further descriptions of what has just been seen.
If you activate the home button at the top edge of the image, you get to the aerial photo/overview and back again.
The tour, like all the others, can be experienced with VR glasses such as a Quest 3. No additional software required - simply enter the URL of this page in the glasses' browser, activate the VR button that is then visible there - and you're done.

The tour of the Steinschloss ruins is almost all-encompassing. A few areas will be expanded and completed in the future - here the technology failed a little when taking the photos.

The Tour

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Steinschloss Castle

Brief History

Help for the tour

The Tour

Historical Views

Geographical Location

Web