Cseri Miklós, Füzes Endre (szerk.): Ház és ember, A Szabadtéri Néprajzi Múzeum évkönyve 9. (Szentendre, Szabadtéri Néprajzi Múzeum, 1994)

REGINA AHAMER: A Salzburgi Szabadtéri Múzeum

Regine Ahamer THE SALZBURG OPEN AIR MUSEUM In the course of looking for the time when the idea of transplanting or rebuilding a peasant house occurred, the „castle-idylls" in the mid18th century are to be thought of first. These were the fruits of Rousseau's ideas who idealized plain rural life. Friend of the people, Archduke Johann, had a Tyrolean house built in Schönbrunn, near Vienna, and employed an alpine herdsman to take care of the area. In the middle of the 19th century re-erected peasant houses appeared at world fairs and at national ones staged in various parts of the Hapsburg Monarchy. The intention of establishing an open air museum in Bukovina, reflecting the diversity of peoples living there, was first voiced in 1906. In 1910 plans were made for an Austrian open air museum near Linz, Upper Austria's provincial capital but, like many other plans, they, too, fell victim to the First World War. In the wake of new incentives emerging in the mid1950s, the foundation agreement of the Austrian Open Air Museum, initiated then headed by Herbert Pöttler, was signed in 1962. The Museum established in the vicinity of Graz, chief town of the province Styria, was opened in 1970. During the 1960s and 70s regional open air museums were founded in six provinces. The first initiatives for a Salzburg Open Air Museum were taken in 1924. Museum founder Kurt Conrad used much effort from 1961 until the deed of lease for the museum area was signed in 1978. From 1979 on farm houses and outbuildings were re-erected at the village of Grossgmain, 15 km from Salzburg. In the autumn of 1984 the museum could be inaugurated. The museum area is divided into five parts in accordance with the five districts of the Province, which more or less correspond with the territories characterized by different types of houses. All the buildings presented are from Salzburg Province. Up to this time of writing 72 buildings have been acquired from which 50 have already been set up. In the beginning museum people strove for reconstructing each structure in its earliest architectural stage. The last two, on the other hand, are shown in the state they were in 1929 and 1942, i. e. in not too distant periods for which photos and even verbal information are available. Also less and less of the implements acquired belongs to times of yore. E. g. the museum has 12 tractors made between the Wars or after the Second Word War. There are 27 people in the Open Air Museum's employ: 2 museologists, 7 clerks, 12 craftsmen. 5 keepers and a gardener. Buildings are taken apart by the Museum's own team. A survey plan is made at first by the architect and in the course of disassembling a so-called ,,breaking down plan" is made on a scale of 1:25. The elements of the building are marked with a number and colour. If necessary the structures taken down are stored in the Museum until they can be set up again in a carefully chosen, suitable place. When deciding on the re-erection of a house, mature consideration is given to its orientation, the terrain, and the position of the building in relation to other, already standing objects. If some components need repair or replacement, it is usually done by using old wood. Reconstructions are made on the basis of archetypes or analogies, or parts and furnishings (e. g. a balcony or a heating device) are taken from similar buildings. Scientific documentation is to cover, besides building documentation, first of all social conditions and the method of farming on the croft. It is done subsequently, when the house is already re-erected in the Museum. For the last five years a part-time teacher has also been employed, whose activities are mainly focussed on the classes of schools visiting the Museum. Schoolchildren are offered various programmes, suited to their age, on different subjects like lighting fittings, wooden architecture, or the blacksmith's work. School teachers receive literature on the chosen topic to prepare the children for what they will see. There are also out-of-school programmes in the form of children's afternoons or children's weeks, when young visitors may try their hands at various crafts with expert help. Michael Becker, Director of the Museum since 1988, lays great stress on the organization of events, on making the Museum „alive". The shows of folk customs, folk songs, folk music, folk dances and home crafts attract many visitors and significantly contribute to the popularity of the Museum. However care and circumspection are to be exercised lest we should present anything in a way it has never existed. At a time of rapid changes in village life the Open Air Museum has the important task of saving traditions from oblivion.