Burg Klingenstein

Klingenstein
Salla, Salla/Klingenstein
Maria Lankowitz
View from the south of the castle hill with the ruins
Klingenstein
Coordinates	47°6′22″N 14°57′39″E / 47.10611°N 14.96083°E / 47.10611; 14.96083
Type	hill castle
Code	AT-6
Height	1,040 m (AA)
Site information
Condition	ruin
Site history
Built	after 1420
Materials	irregular quarry stone masonry made of marble

The ruins of Burg Klingenstein, also known as Burg Salla and in literature partly under the double name "Burg Klingenstein/Salla", are located west of the village of Salla in the market town of Maria Lankowitz in Western Styria. First named Klingenstein in 1834,^[1] the castle was built to protect the trade route from Voitsberg over the Gaberl to the upper Murtal. Its history can only be reconstructed incompletely due to a lack of written sources. Structural details, such as the masonry and the design of the embrasures, suggest that it was probably built in the second half of the 15th century, which is quite late compared to other Austrian castles. The Counts of Montfort, who ruled over the nearby village of Salla at the time, could have been the builders. From the 16th century at the latest, the castle was owned by the noble family Saurau and subsequently also by the Glojacher. The castle was probably destroyed by fire in the 16th century and never rebuilt. From 1982/1983, the ruins were rebuilt by the former mayor of the former municipality of Salla, although some of these rebuilds were new constructions and are controversial among researchers. Three archaeological excavations have also taken place to date, but these did not cover the entire castle area.

The castle was probably built in a construction phase using locally available marble and consists of the core castle and the fortification to the west of it. The original design of the castle and the functions of the individual buildings can only be guessed at due to the lack of scientific research to date.