“A bald mountain? Who could look at this lush landscape and call it ‘bald’?” you might wonder. We are standing at the foot of Kahlenberggrat, a spur of the famous Kahlenberg here in Vienna. And yes, once upon a time, this whole area looked quite different. The Kahlenberg, towering above us, wasn’t always known by this name. Before the 18th century, wild boars roamed freely through its oak forests, earning it the charming nicknames “Sauberg” (sow mountain) or “Schweinsberg” (pig mountain). Imagine that! But fate, or rather, a Habsburg emperor, had other plans. Ferdinand II acquired the mountain in 1628, renaming it “Josephsberg” in honor of Saint Joseph. It was Emperor Leopold I who, after renaming the neighboring peak to Leopoldsberg, bestowed the name “Kahlenberg” upon our majestic mountain. Looking at it today, cloaked in greenery, it’s hard to imagine it as a barren landscape. But the name “Kahlenberg,” meaning “bald mountain,” speaks to a time when its slopes were bare, a testament to its fascinating and ever-changing history.
Центральный дом работников искусств
Step through the grand wooden doors of the Central House of the Workers of Art, and you’ll be transported to