Monument Protection

Monuments - Testimonials of Human Action

It is an innate need of human beings to leave their mark. Monuments have always had a strong meaning for us as individuals, as well as a social significance in terms of community-building. With people's understanding of remembrance, they are witnesses of the cultural development of humankind in terms of art, history, landscape design, architectural design, engineering, and politics. We are surrounded by monuments in our everyday lives - in the form of objects, and of special features that may be more visible or less visible to us, tangible or comprehensible. In their essential role, they shift from being memorabilia that commemorate something or someone, to becoming a use or utility value for people in the here and now.

The State of Styria supports the conservation of monuments through a set of targeted promotion measures.

Monument Protection - Preserving our Cultural Heritage

The importance of monuments is strengthened if individual testimonies of human action receive general and public interest, and thus come under special protection. This is ensured by the applicable laws, such as the  Monument Protection Act, a federal law ensuring the protection of monuments on the basis of their historic or artistic relevance or other cultural significance.

The items and objects listed in the  List of Monuments of the Austrian Federal Monuments Office show the wide variety of monuments that have so far been protected. In July 2021, there were 4,996 monuments listed in Styria that are either under monument protection according to Sec. 2 a Monument Protection Act, or protected by means of a notice according to Sec. 3 Monument Protection Act.

The State of Styria Department acts as the supreme authority in these matters as specified in Sections 7, 31, 36 and 37 Monument Protection Act.