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Venus of Willendorf
The most famous woman of Wachau “Venus of Willendorf” is only 11 centimetres tall, with extreme feminine curves (even obese) and is almost 30,000 years old. This world famous figurine dates back to the Old Stone Age.
The little figure of Venus was found in 1908 in Willendorf—a small village on the north bank of the Danube between Spitz and Aggsbach Markt—during the construction of the Wachau railway. She is believed to be a fertility idol meant to increase the fertility of the landscape. Similar female figurines were found all over Europe up to Siberia, but compared to others, Venus of Willendorf is unique in its degree of details and is the best preserved of all Venus figurines found to date.
It is a remarkable story that a stone age finding from a village with less than 200 inhabitants has become an icon for many causes worldwide, including equal rights for women and the LGBT movement. Even the café in Vienna’s oldest LGBT-rights centre is called “Willendorf.”
The original figurine is now exhibited in the Museum of Natural History in Vienna. It is carved from an oolithic limestone that is not local in the area and tinted with red ochre. In Willendorf you can visit the original archaeological site.
The Venusium is a little museum in the village of Willendorf which is dedicated to the famous Venus and operated by a local association. There you find a reproduction of the original figurine and information about the Venus of Willendorf, the Stone Age, and the archaeological site of Willendorf.
Visit
Venus of Willendorf
Hours
The archaeological site can be visited year round free of charge.
The museum is open from May to October; the hours are announced on the website.
Pricing
€ 1,-/2,-
