Engelsberg Marble

Engelsberg Marble is a stone quarry and geotope in Winzendorf-Muthmannsdorf featuring dense limestone formations with a distinctive cherry red color marked by white streaks throughout. The site sits at approximately 510 meters elevation and displays Hallstätter limestone, a compact stone prized for its striking natural patterns.

The first documented lease of the quarry dates to 1698, when stonemason Paul Klimpfinger received the concession to extract stone. Intensive extraction periods between 1860 and 1901 transformed the site into a major center of stone production.

Since 1985, the site hosts annual sculptor symposiums where artists create stone works that remain as permanent installations, showing how contemporary craftspeople interpret marble as a medium. These pieces reflect the ongoing creative dialogue between tradition and modern artistic expression.

The municipality of Winzendorf-Muthmannsdorf manages access to the site and provides information about guided tours that focus on geological aspects. Visitors should expect uneven terrain and open quarry edges, so sturdy footwear and careful attention to surroundings are recommended.

The quarry walls display remarkably smooth surfaces created by cable saws, giving them an almost mechanical appearance that contrasts with natural stone. Italian workers stationed here during World War II left inscriptions carved into nearby cisterns, leaving traces of their lives at this remote location.