Chiemseehof

Snapshot

The building at Chiemseegasse 8 is the seat of the Salzburg state parliament and home to the final work in the Salzburg Foundation’s Walk of Modern Art. Most people walk past it.

The Story

The Chiemseehof has been a building of civic consequence since the 14th century, when the Bishops of Chiemsee, suffragan bishops serving under the Salzburg archbishops, established their city residence here. The name comes from those bishops, whose island seat on the Chiemsee made a Salzburg pied-à-terre a practical necessity.

A land grant from Stift St. Peter in 1305 formalised the site. The complex grew around a courtyard, accumulated a chapel in 1355, survived fires and renovations, received a Baroque facade and then, after secularisation in 1806, passed into state hands. Since 1868 it has housed the Salzburger Landtag, the provincial parliament.

The interior still holds Gothic barrel vaults in the cellar and the bones of the medieval bishop’s palace beneath later stonework. The most recent major renovation, completed around 2019, cost approximately EUR 7.4 million. The building sits inside the UNESCO World Heritage zone of Salzburg.

What brings most visitors to the courtyard today is Anselm Kiefer’s monumental bronze sculpture Die Sprache der Vögel (The Language of Birds), the final work commissioned for the Salzburg Foundation’s Walk of Modern Art. Kiefer’s bronze fills the courtyard with the scale and weight his work characteristically demands. The courtyard is accessible during daytime hours; the parliament itself is a working building and not open for casual visits.

Visiting

Chiemseegasse 8, in the Altstadt, a short walk from Residenzplatz and Salzburg Cathedral. The courtyard is freely accessible during the day. The parliament building is not open to the public except during special events. Combine with Residenzplatz and the rest of the Walk of Modern Art route.