The farmer’s museum in St Magdalena in Styria is just one of those places, where time has stopped and the old times start to live again. Here you can find so many forgotten things, and everything tells the visitor its own story. |
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 The old farm house, which was built in 1820, with it’s thick walls and small windows is something special. Every room was furnished from the owner just as it looked like in the past, and so you want to sit down and have a rest. |
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 Mr. Rath collected more than 4.500 things and he arranged them in all the rooms. Many things he found at flea-markets, and others he found when he was looking for hidden treasures. |
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 Josef Rath, owner of the museum:
This old pipe was in a pot, which was soiled with chicken droppings. Just as I touched the pot, it fell down and I saw some old things inside. And then I realized this old pipe, which was very dirty. So I cleaned it and then it looked like new. This moment I felt like it was Christmas. |
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 Gerhard Gschiel, mayor of St. Magdalena Gerhard Gschiel, mayor:
"When you come in, you feel like you are in another world. Every pot, every jug and every picture tells you it’s own story and when you sit down near the old tiled stove you feel like at home – I think, it was a time without stress!" |
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 So many old things you can find here. There are things of daily use, tools or the original furnished old shop. But you must have time – time, which is secondary within these thick walls. And if you have luck, you can meet an old shoemaker in his workshop. He will tell you some stories of his youth, when he came to the farmers to repair their shoes. |
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 Karl Teubl, an old shoemaker Karl Teubl, an old shoemaker:
"When we came to the farmers we always had this old box with us, on which I’m sitting. In this box there were all the tools, we needed to repair the shoes. But we visited the farmers only once in a year, because we had to repair the shoes of all the people in the village!" |
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 Mr. Rath started collecting things when he was a little child. And he is very proud, when he can present one of his treasures. And so you can sit down at the old table in the warm kitchen and then you can listen to the stories, which happened many years ago in these rooms. |
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 Franz Kneissl, an old farmer Franz Kneissl, an old farmer:
"I didn’t have a pleasant childhood. We were seven children and my father was a soldier in the war. One of my brothers died in the war. And so my mother had to do all the work on the farm.
We didn’t know what oranges or bananas look like and my first chocolate I got when I left school. But everyone of us tried to be helpful, when somebody needed help!" |
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 It is a museum, where you can see how people lived many years ago, because everything is arranged as it looked like in the past. Here you will become a part of the old times. And something you will see from a different point of view, but you must have time for all he small things of life. |
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 Johanna Teubl Johanna Teubl:
"People were so modest many years ago and they needed much more time for all the work, they had to do!" |
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 We can’t stop time – but just for a short time Mr. Rath managed to bring us back to another world – a world we had forgotten. But with the help of Mr. Rath the old times will be back with us.
For visitors: Josef Rath, Tel.: +43 (0)3332 / 8394 or municipal office St. Magdalena / Styria: +43 (0)3332 / 8169. |
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Script: Peter Bratko / Copyright 2008.
Simply click on "Video" below to see the film (16:9)!
The video will start after a few seconds. If the video doesn't start, click on the "start-buttom".
You can also hear the soundtrack under the link "Music". |
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