Tecneum - Museum of Technology

With the Tecneum, the Curatorship for Technical Cultural Assets established South Tyrol’s first virtual museum in 2005. Since its own founding in 1995, the Curatorship has been concerned with raising the consciousness of technical monuments in the province in the form of conferences, exhibitions, and other events. It is to that end that the Tecneum Museum of Technology was set up. In its virtual rooms, it presents objects and ensembles from South Tyrol having to do with the history of technology that were created within a period of around 250 years (1750-2005). In addition to the object data base that is divided into branches (collections), three different itineraries offer the virtual visitor thematic access to technical milestones (“Technology”), geographic access to the locations “Panorama”), and historical access to further points of reference (”History”). In the “Highlights” area, individual monuments and topics are depicted from different scientific aspects. Press releases and a newsletter provide information about current events on site. Starting out from the virtual page, a visit to the technical cultural assets can also easily be planned. Much is offered not only at the virtual level, but at the real level, as well. There is a “Technical Culture Mile” along South Tyrol’s bicycle path network, with highlights in the Eisack (Isarco) Valley, Vinschgau (Venosta) Valley, Burgraviato, and Puster (Pusteria) Valley, where numerous milestones of technical progress can be visited at more than thirty locations, including cable cars, water power works, and railway systems. These sites are also documented in a bicycling guide that was published in 2008 by Kompass- und Sportler-Verlag.