A stroll through history, immersed in a mediaeval atmosphere
An artistic heritage if invaluable worth pays testimony to Vipiteno’s two-millennia history. The distinctive Torre delle Dodici, undisputed emblem of the city, marks the boundary between the Città Vecchia and the fifteenth-century via Città Nuova, an impressive exemplar of mediaeval architecture with brightly-coloured houses adorned with overhangs, battlements, porticoes and intriguing signage.
The town hall is a jewel of late-Gothic architecture, and its Council Room and fascinating courtyard are open to visitors. At the end of the vicolo dei Cappuccini, overlooked by some of the Posthotel Lamm bedrooms, you can admire the Jöchlsthurn manor.
Amongst the countless places of worship in Vipiteno, the Gothic Santo Spirito church in Piazza Città houses magnificent fifteenth-century frescoes and is well worth a visit, while the splendid Nostra Signora della Palude parish church, in Gothic style with Baroque overlays, stands at the edge of the city.
Just a short walk from here you will find an impressive complex of buildings which was once home to the Teutonic Order and now houses the Civic Museum where works by late-Gothic artist Hans Multscher, including some wonderful altarpieces, are on display.
In the area around Vipiteno, there are a number of atmospheric mediaeval castles, amongst which the picturesque Castel Tasso, one of the best-preserved castles in South Tyrol, is a notable example. This castle has belonged to the Thurn and Taxis family since the beginning of the 19th century, and many of its historic rooms are open to the public.
The surrounding area is also overflowing with masterpieces of the natural variety together with remains of the city’s mining past, including the Stanghe waterfalls in a spectacular gully equipped with steps and walkways and the Provincial Mining Museum with branches in Val Ridanna and Monteneve, where, up at 2,355 metres on high, you can visit an incredible mountain mine district, accessible only on foot.