“Death must be Viennese", the Viennese composer and poet Georg Kreisler once claimed. And he was right. Because in no other city life is shaped by death to quite the same extent that it is in Vienna: from catacombs full of skeletons, a cemetery that doubles up as a popular recreation area for the living, and unique works of art focusing on death and life – the fabric of the city is suffused with all things eerily beautiful and deliciously dark.
And there’s no need to worry about being bored to death either: guided tours of the Imperial Burial Vault, a trip to the funeral museum or a performance of Mozart's Requiem (composed, naturally enough, in Vienna), make this taboo subject the focal point of a dream day out. No wonder, then, that Vienna also qualifies as "the last place you want to be” for a humble mayfly.
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Video about Mayfly in Vienna
Why death has to be Viennese:
Slide #1
The term „A schöne Leich“ not only crops up in connection with elaborate funeral services. It also expresses a specifically Viennese attitude to life: death is inevitable – so let’s celebrate it.
Slide #2
Vienna’s Central Cemetery (Zentralfriedhof) is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. Not only is it home to impressive graves (among them that of Ludwig van Beethoven). It is also a popular recreational area, especially among Viennese joggers.
Slide #3
„Death and Life“ , one of Gustav Klimt’s most famous works, is on show at the Leopold Museum. The painting depicts people of all ages who look like they are asleep, ignoring the Grim Reaper.
Slide #4
Mozart died in Vienna while composing his world-famous Requiem. One of the most commonly performed works at funerals, the piece was premiered at Vienna’s Michaelerkirche church.
Slide #5
Habsburg burials took on a curious form. While their hearts were buried in the Church of the Augustinian Friars (Augustinerkirche) and their entrails interred at St. Stephen's Cathedral, their bodies were laid to rest in the Kapuzinergruft – the crypt beneath the Church of the Capuchin Friars.
Slide #6
Washed ashore by the Danube, hundreds of unknown dead were buried at the Cemetery of the Nameless. This melancholy place became world famous following its appearance in the 1994 film Before Sunrise.
Slide #7
On two occasions each year, visitors to the Vienna Funeral Museum can try out a coffin for size. There is also no shortage of weird and wonderful items on show, including a Lego tramway for transporting corpses, as well as cigarette cases bearing the inscription "Rauchen sichert Arbeitsplätze” (smoking guarantees jobs).
Slide #8
Wienerlied is a whole genre of music that’s shaped by a laid-back approach to death and life. Rather than spreading misery, this wine tavern (“Heuriger”) favorite soon has people raising a glass in celebration.
Slide #9
The eponymous Augustin from the popular Viennese folk song ‘O du lieber Augustin’ is said to have survived a night in a plague pit in 1679. His legend has come to embody the city’s indomitable thirst for life. The plague column provides a reminder of the devastating plague epidemics.
Slide #10
Egon Schiele created Death and the Girl in 1915, when he was drafted for military service in the First World War. The painting is on display at the Upper Belvedere.
