Kaigasse Lane & Kaiviertel
The Kaigasse is a narrow lane in the Medieval city centre (Old Town or Altstadt) of Salzburg. It is the main lane in the so-called Kaivertel neighbourhood, which was directly linked to the Kapitelgasse Lane with the courts of the Domherren (literally "Cathedral Lords", referring to high-ranking officials of the diocese). The Kaigasse developed over the course of centuries by the merging of several Medieval lanes since the 12th century. The weird shape of the Kaigasse is probably also linked to previously existing buildings from the Roman town of Iuvavum.
At the site of today′s Kaigasse, there was a temple dedicated to the gods Asclepios, Hygieia and Kybele. The temple was rather big (45 by 26 metres) and associated with several smaller buildings. Foundations of these Roman constructions can be seen in the "Roman theatre" of the Mozartkino, the cinema in the Kaigasse - it is the oldest cinema of Salzburg, starting in 1905 in the former brewery of the Kasererbräu. In this building, the Roman foundations form parts of the walls in the basement.
Things to Note at Kaigasse/Kaiviertel
There are a few details to note about the Kaigasse: House number 4 is an adopted church, the former Salvatorkirche, which was built before 1421. Parts of Kaigasse 6 was probably also derived from the church; in the courtyard, there was probably a small garden that was used at the time of Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau; most of it, however, is Gothic and belonged to the Domkapitel. House number 8 was the inn "Zum Weißen Ross" ("White Horse"), where the alchemist and doctor Theophrastus Paracelsus died in 1541. House number 20 was built at the site of the former Nicolaikirche Church.
House number 12 is one of the buildings that was associated with the administration of the Salzburger Dom cathedral; it is now used by the federal province and the Salzburg University as administrative buildings. Kaigasse 17 is the Högelwörther Hof, first mentioned in 1436. It was the local palace of the abbots of the monastery in Högelwörther in Bavaria.
Underneath this building, a side-branch of the Almkanal runs. Around the corner, there is a small square where there were the Berchtesgadener Hof and the Gurker Hof courts. At the end of the Kaigasse, you will get to the Kajetanerplatz with the Landesgericht (Court House) and the Kajetanerkirche.
The Kaiviertel is rather expensive and touristy, even though it is less crowded than the area between cathedral and Getreidegasse. During the past years, the tradition of the Kaigassenfest, an annual street festival, was revived; since 2008, the festival is held again in the Kaiviertel every year in summer: Live music, market stands of local companies and open days of local facilities then help to learn more about the Kaiviertel in a relaxed party atmosphere.
Hidden Treasures of Salzburg
Links
http://www.salzburg.info/en/sights/squares_streets/kaigasse.htm
The Tourist Information Centre on the Kaigasse
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaigasse_und_Krotachgasse
German Wikipedia on Kaigasse & Krotachgasse
