Sprachen
Navigation

Permanent exhibition Liechtenstein FarmhouseMuseum

Welcome to an approximately 500-year-old farmhouse, one of the last to be built in the alpine region using this sustainable construction method. Its style and furnishings show how people in Liechtenstein lived around 1900.

The Liechtenstein FarmhouseMuseum in Schellenberg gives visitors an insight into the simple life long typical of Liechtenstein. Dating back more than 500 years, this old farmhouse has changed location several times with its owners.

It is known as the "Biedermann-Haus" in memory of the last private owners of the building, the Biedermann family, who lived in it for over 150 years. The construction and room layout show how people in this region lived and worked in the Late Middle Ages.

Mobile timber building from 1518

Due to Liechtenstein's turbulent history in the 20th century, comparatively few historical buildings survive today. The building which houses the Liechtenstein FarmhouseMuseum, erected in 1518, therefore has a special significance for the history of the country.

Its timber design was for a long time common in much of the alpine region. According to the law of the time, living quarters and farm buildings were part of the "chattel" belonging to a farmer who leased a plot of land. Therefore, if the farmer took over a new lease, the house could be dismantled, moved and rebuilt at a new location. This explains why the Biedermann-Haus, built in 1518, moved in 1687 and 1793/94. In 1992/93 it came to its present spot, before being listed as a monument of historical importance in 1993. The living quarters were built on top of a brick basement. They consisted of a kitchen, which was originally open to the elements all the way up to the ceiling, a parlour, an adjoining room and two sleeping chambers on the second floor.

The fact that these buildings could be dismantled and moved from one location to another mean few have survived. The Liechtenstein Farm-houseMuseum is one of only a handful of buildings with this design that have been preserved in the alpine region.

The beams of the house are fixed with wooden pegs and nails.

Moss and lichen were used to insulate the building.

Liechtenstein FarmhouseMuseum

Liechtenstein in the second half of the 19th century: first signs of economic change

For a long time, Liechtenstein was a rural country with a modest standard of living for its inhabitants. Until the middle of the 20th century, many of them still depended on seasonal work abroad – or even decided to emigrate permanently. However, from the second half of the 19th century, the first signs of economic change began to appear. The regulation of the Rhine river reduced damage caused by recurrent floods, and more fertile land became permanently usable. From 1860 onwards, industrial enterprises began to emerge. These offered many Liechtenstein citizens new opportunities for a regular income. However, it was not until after 1945 that the great economic upswing in Liechtenstein set in, leading to changes in all areas of life.

Image from the Liechtenstein FarmhouseMuseum

Parents‘ sleeping chamber

Image of the Liechtenstein FarmhouseMuseum

 

360° View into the Lichtenstein FarmhousMuseum.