Pyramidenkogel is an

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

Carinthia Carinthia ( ; ; ) is the southernmost and least densely populated States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The Lake Wolayer is a mountain lake on the Carinthian side of the Carnic Main ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. It is located to the south of the

Wörthersee Wörthersee (; Slovene: ''Vrbsko jezero'', ) is a lake in the southern Austrian state of Carinthia. The bathing lake is a main tourist destination in summer. Geography Wörthersee is Carinthia's largest lake. It is elongated, about long and ...

and near the town of

Maria Wörth Maria Wörth () is a municipality in the district of Klagenfurt-Land in the Austrian state of Carinthia (state), Carinthia. The centre of the resort town is situated on a peninsula at the southern shore of the Wörthersee. In the east, the munici ...

, in an area that is a boundary between speakers of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and Slovenian. In nearby

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

the mountain is known as ''Jedvovca''. The mountain has been a tourist attraction since at least the late 19th century. The view from its top is mentioned in

Karl Baedeker Karl Ludwig Johannes Baedeker ( , ; born Bädeker; 3 November 1801 – 4 October 1859) was a German publisher whose company, Baedeker, set the standard for authoritative guidebooks for tourists. Karl Baedeker was descended from a long line ...

's 1879 ''The Eastern Alps''. Another mountain named Pyramidenkogel can be found in Austrian

Totes Gebirge The Totes Gebirge, also known in English as the Dead Mountains, is a mountain range in Austria that forms part of the Northern Limestone Alps, lying between the Salzkammergut and the Ennstaler Alpen. The name ''Totes Gebirge'' is supposedly der ...

mountain range. Located south-east of the

Almsee Almsee, English sometimes Lake Alm, Dagg, Anne Innis. 2011. ''Animal Friendships''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 34. is a lake in Upper Austria's part of the Salzkammergut in the Almtal valley, south of the village of Grünau im Al ...

, its height is 1961 m.

Structures on the mountain

First structure and cross

A wooden observation platform had been built in 1950, as was a cross to remember the dead of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and "victims of the mountains." The cross was consecrated on 20 August 1950. An annual "Trausteinmesse," a special

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

, is celebrated at the end of summer.

First Pyramidekogel Tower (1968–2012)

A observation and broadcasting

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

of steel and

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

, the Pyramidenkogel Tower, was built between 1966 and 1968 and was a well-known "futuristic" tourist attraction, according to the ''

Rough Guide Rough Guides is a travel company that offers tailor-made trips planned and arranged by local travel experts based in destinations around the world. Originally established as a guidebook publisher in 1982, Rough Guides expanded into customized t ...

to Austria''; ''Lonely Planet'' calls it "avant-garde." In 2008, the last summer season before construction of a new edifice, the tower welcomed the five-millionth visitor. The tower was eventually demolished on October 12, 2012.

Current tower (2013–present)

In July 2006, plans were made to tear down the existing tower and replace it with a new building, a multi-purpose activity centre, which was approved in 2007 and for which the Carinthian government set aside €10 million in 2008. A competition for the new design was started in 2007; the

architectural firm In the United States, an architectural firm or architecture firm is a business that employs one or more licensed architects and practices the profession of architecture; while in South Africa, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark and other countr ...

of Klaura & Kaden won the competition. Construction was to have begun by late 2008, and the old tower was to be imploded in October 2008, but was postponed and financial and political difficulties prevented any new construction. The demolition was planned once again for September 2010 but was postponed again. The last opening day was on September 30, 2012, and the first existing tower was demolished on October 12, 2012. The new tower, finished in 2013, was described by Dietmar Kaden as a "Himmelsleiter aus gestapelten Ellipsen," a ladder into heaven made of stacked

ellipse In mathematics, an ellipse is a plane curve surrounding two focus (geometry), focal points, such that for all points on the curve, the sum of the two distances to the focal points is a constant. It generalizes a circle, which is the special ty ...

s, and is to function as a "Leuchtturm der Holzbranche," a lighthouse for the

timber industry Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

. No name has been decided on; Markus Klaura has proposed "Isis Noreia," for the goddesses

Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...

and

Noreia Noreia is an ancient lost city in the Eastern Alps, most likely in southern Austria. While according to Julius Caesar it is known to have been the capital of the Celtic kingdom of Noricum, it was already referred to as a lost city by Pliny the ...

(the latter a Germanic deity, the Roman equivalent of Isis). The new tower is built of wood and steel, and at a height of 100 metres it is the tallest wooden observation tower in the world. Architects Markus Klaura and Dietmar Kaden of Klagenfurt and

structural engineer Structural engineers analyze, design, plan, and research List of structural elements, structural components and structural systems to achieve design goals and ensure the safety and comfort of users or occupants. Their work takes account mainly of ...

Markus Lackner of

Villach Villach (; ; ; ) is the seventh-largest city in Austria and the second-largest in the federal state of Carinthia. It is an important traffic junction for southern Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. , the population is 61,887. Together wit ...

have designed a structure which features a visitors platform at 83 metres, a cafe at 70 metres, and a

slide Slide or Slides may refer to: Places * Slide, California, former name of Fortuna, California Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums * ''Slide'' (Lisa Germano album), 1998 * ''Slide'' (George Clanton album), 2018 *''Slide'', by Patrick Glee ...

(the longest slide in Europe). The tower is PEFC-certified. Pyramidenkogel Turm 01.jpg, The demolished Pyramidenkogel Tower, built in 1968 Pyramidenkogel (3).jpg, View from the new tower toward the northeast. The lake

and

peninsula are clearly visible. Klagenfurt is at right. Pyramidenkogel (1).jpg, Detail of the tower's wood-steel construction

References

External links