Embedded within the summit of Mount Kronplatz at 2.275m, the Messner Mountain Museum Corones explores the traditions, history and discipline of mountaineering. The majority of the museum’s exterior and interior panels are made from in-situ concrete. The museum is arranged over several levels to reduce its footprint. During construction, 4,000 cubic meters of earth and rock was excavated and then replaced above and around the completed structure – immersing the museum within Mount Kronplatz and helping to maintain a more constant internal temperature. From the topmost level that houses the entry area, stairways lead like waterfalls over three exhibition levels all the way to the bottom. At the lowest floor, visitors pass by glass-enclosed viewing windows and arrive at a terrace that is nearly 40 square meters, from which they are able to enjoy a 240° panorama from the Zillertal Alps to the Ortles-Ortler to the Dolomites.
“The idea is that visitors can descend within the mountain to explore its caverns and grottos, before emerging through the mountain wall on the other side, out onto the terrace overhanging the valley far below with spectacular, panoramic views.”