Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
inquisitive hands have already polished parts of the dull bronze, including Kaiser
Rudolf's codpiece!
Andreas Hofer
(1767-1810), the Tyrolean patriot who led the rebellion against Napole-
on's forces, is entombed in the church. In the
Silberkapelle
, a dazzling silver Madonna
keeps watch over the marble tomb of Archduke Ferdinand II and his first wife, Philippine
Welser.
Volkskunst Museum
MUSEUM
(Folk Art Museum;
www.tiroler-landesmuseum.at
; Universitätstrasse 2; combined ticket with Hofkirche adult/child/
family €10/6/20; 9am-5pm)
Next door to the Hofkirche, Volkskunst Museum presents a fas-
cinating romp through Tyrolean folk art from hand-carved sleighs and Christmas cribs to
carnival masks and cow bells. On the 1st floor is a beautifully restored Gothic
Stube
(par-
lour) complete with low ceiling, wood panelling and an antique tiled oven.
Schloss Ambras
(
www.schlossambras-innsbruck.at
; Schlosstrasse 20; adult/child/family €10/free/18; 10am-5pm; )
Pictures-
quely perched on a hill, this Renaissance pile was acquired in 1564 by Archduke Ferdin-
and II, then ruler of Tyrol, who transformed it from a fortress into a palace. He was the
mastermind behind the
Spanische Saal
(Spanish Hall), a 43m-long banquet hall with a
wooden inlaid ceiling and Tyrolean nobles gazing from the walls. Also note the grisaille
(grey relief) around the courtyard and the sunken bath-tub where his beloved Philippine
used to bathe.
Ferdinand instigated the magnificent Ambras Collection, encompassing three ele-
ments. Highlights of the
Rüstkammer
(Armour Collection) include the archduke's wedding
armour - specially shaped to fit his bulging midriff ! - and the 2.6m suit created for giant
Bartlmä Bon. The
Kunst und Wunderkammer
(Art and Curiosity Cabinet) is crammed with
fantastical objects, including a petrified shark, gravity-defying stilt shoes and the Fang-
stuhl - a chair designed to trap drunken guests at Ferdinand's raucous parties.
The
Portraitgalerie
features room upon room of Habsburg portraits, with paintings by Ti-
tian, Velázquez and van Dyck. Maria Anna of Spain (No 126, Room 22) wins the prize
for the most ludicrous hairstyle. When Habsburg portraits begin to pall, you can stroll or
picnic in the extensive
castle gardens
( 6am-8pm)
, home to strutting peacocks.
Schloss Ambras is 4.5km southeast of the centre. The Sightseer bus (
Click here
)
runs
CASTLE
