Facade of Vienna University Main Building
Vienna University has educated and employed so many illustrious scientists (not to mention eminent scholars in many other disciplines) that the chance to get inside was too good to miss. Fortunately, this venerable institution (founded 1365) offers tours of several sites, including the magnificent main building on the Ringstraße.
The tour kicks off in the main foyer with a display commemorating 8 Nobel Laureates. One space is currently vacant and has a question mark instead of a portrait. The rumour is that the authorities are waiting for a female to fill the spot. Although the Nobel Prize is not awarded posthumously, many think that Lise Meitner was denied her rightful share in a prize for political reasons, so some argue that she might be added.
8 Nobel Laureates and one vacant space. My friend Willy poses under the vacant space which is indicated with a question mark. How many can you identify?
We then pass up one of the grand staircases, which are known as the Doctor’s Stair and the Lawyer’s Stair, an indication that, as with most European academic institutions until comparatively modern times, the study of Law, Medicine and Theology were the main, indeed mostly the only, subjects studied and taught.
Halfway up, we stop at a plaque commemorating the murder of Professor Moritz Schlick by a former student in 1936. Schlick was one of the founders of Logical Positivism and his views were unpopular with the rising fascist movements. Schlick’s killer was later released by the Nazis after serving only 2 years. Again, the university seems particularly keen to acknowledge and repudiate its past.
A little further up, we pass the bust of Heinrich von Ferstel, who designed this grand edifice, as well as many other notable buildings in Vienna and elsewhere, including the rather lovely Votivkirche.
Ferstel, architect of the University
The grand staircase (Feststiege) in the Main Building.
Main Ceremonial Chamber (Festsaal) in the Main Building.
Main Ceremonial Chamber (Festsaal) in the Main Building.
Next, we pass through several grand halls and onto the Ceremonial Chamber. This is where I presume most of the greats received their degrees. So I can stand where people like Boltzmann and Schrödinger stood to begin their careers in science. Don’t miss the paintings on the ceiling – copies of ‘lost’ and ‘degenerate art from the likes of Klimt.
Entrance to Festsaal (Ceremonial Hall)
Through more magnificent halls and grand staircases and we arrive at the Library. Every seat was occupied on a Saturday in June with exams looming!
The Lawyers Stair.
Finally, we descend yet another stair to visit the Arcade Court, where busts of eminent staff and alumni line a pleasant open space that contains probably the best exemplar of the university’s determination to be PC. A statue casts an interesting shadow, which is boldly delineated in the flagstones. Have a look!
Arcade Court.
The tour finishes here, but take a little time to walk around the Arcade Court and see how many of the statues you can identify by their work. Many of the greats are of course very well known. It’s interesting to note how many of those honoured here ended up elsewhere. Schrödinger with the short form of his Wave Equation, who spent most of his career in Dublin, for one. For students of the history and philosophy of science, there is (Sir) Karl Popper, and Frederich Hayek as another expatriate representing the ‘dismal science’ of economics. Alas, one likeness I was hoping to see, that of Ludwig Boltzmann, seems to have been replaced by a soda and snack stand.
Meynert, Schrödinger and Doppler
Schrödinger with short form of Wave Equation.
Krafft-Ebbing, Pioneer of the study of human sexuality.
Ernst Spath, chemist of natural products. First synthesis of mescaline.
One of Vienna’s most illustrious sons, Ludwig Boltzmann, hidden behind a snack cart!
Boltzmann appears to lost his head. A joke in poor taste, about a man who hanged himself.
Tours in English on Saturday (with charming and completely unnecessary apologies for excellent English from the post-Doc conducting) take around an hour and cost €5. See http://event.univie.ac.at/en/guided-tours/guided-tours/main-building-of-the-university-of-vienna/ for details.
Top Tip
The University cafeteria offers reasonable food, but is not as cheap as you might expect for somewhere patronised by students. Perhaps Viennese students are wealthier than most?
As you’ll probably be thinking of lunch as the tour finishes, I’d suggest picking-up something from the nearby deli and eating in any of the nearby parks. If the weather doesn’t permit, then make plans to move on elsewhere.