The Assumption of Our Lady Cathedral

Anyone arriving in Bolzano by hire-car can’t fail to be immediately impressed by what is Bolzano’s chief landmark and most striking building, the Assumption of Our Lady Cathedral.  Rising above the rest of Bolzano’s medieval buildings, this remarkable church is simultaneously a gem of Romanesque and Gothic architecture, and a symbol of the southern and northern influences in Bolzano.  The original Romanesque structure was consecrated in 1180, before being later embellished in the Gothic style. It is built from striking red and yellow sandstone, and features fearsome gargoyles reminiscent of Notre Dame in Paris, and which are considered masterworks of High Gothic architecture.

One of the finest achievements of the art of Gothic stonemasonry is the cathedral’s steeple, completed in 1517, which is visible from almost anywhere in the whole of Bolzano.  Such was is the intricacy of the stonework and height of the steeple it is said that the medieval inhabitants of Bolzano were afraid to sound the church’s bells for decades, for fear that it might collapse.  This is truly both a rarity and a gem, and worthy of a couple of hours of any visitor’s time.

Otzi, the Iceman of Bolzano

Not every city can boast a world-famous archaeological phenomenon, but in Otzi the Iceman, Bolzano has just that.  Bolzano’s South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology is home to the immaculately preserved body of Otzi, the mummified traveller from around 3300 BC who was discovered in a Tyrolean glacier in the early 1990s.  Offering an unprecedented insight into Copper Age European culture, the mummified, frozen body was discovered complete with its clothing and possessions such as copper axe, flint knife, bow, arrows and quiver, which are all preserved at the museum.

As the home of Europe’s oldest known natural human mummy, Bolzano has long been the centre of attention for archaeological enthusiasts and anthropologists, but this is too good an opportunity to miss for passing visitors too.  Anyone passing through Bolzano, in their hire-car or on foot, simply must visit this most remarkable of sights.  The museum was specifically established in 1998 to house Otzi, who is now held in a climate controlled chamber. Along with original finds there are models, reconstructions and multimedia presentations showing Ötzi in the context of the early history of the southern Alpine region.