This Amazing Modern Museum Is Built Into A Mountaintop
Many people may know Reinhold Messner as the first man to climb Mount Everest solo and without the aid of bottled oxygen – others may just know his name from that one Ben Folds Five album from 1995 – but either way, the man is a legend.
So much so that Messner has created five museums across the world to educate others on the history of mountains – mountaineering, rock climbing, the history of glaciers, the science of mountains and even the history of mountain people.
In July, Messner opened another museum from his autonomous Messner Mountain Museum project in the northern Italian ski village of Kronplatz.
The MMM Corones is devoted to the discipline of mountaineering – something Messner has had great influence over throughout his climbing career. Focussing on modern mountaineering, the exhibition goes through the 250+ years of the activity, taking special note of the progress made in equipment and technology.
Corones offers unparalleled views of of the Dolomites and the surrounding Alps and is only a short drive from the nearest town. Of course, there’s also the option of a four hour hike up the mountain, which seems pretty fitting.
The museum’s location is pretty iconic too, having been carved into the top of the 2275 metre tall cliff face. Designed by famed Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid, MMM Corones is 1000-square-metres of exhibition space.
Corones is the final exhibition space in the Messner Mountain Museum project, with the five other locations scattered across northern Italy. Each location deals with a different aspect of the sport – Firmian is the centrepiece and deals with man’s relationship to the mountain, Juval focusses on magical and religious significance of the mountain, Dolomites focusses on its surrounding area and rock formation, Ortles deals with ice mountaineering and Ripa has emphasis on living within mountain regions across the world.
Entrance into MMM Corones will cost you around € 7 ($11 AUD) – or you can do an MMM tour-ticket for entrance to all six Messner museums for € 35 ($56 AUD) and it’s valid for a year. Pretty awesome stuff if you’re keen on learning all there is about hiking and the history of mountaineering.
(Images: Messner Mountain Museum)
