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At the WasserSpiegel museum on the Mönchsberg, you will learn interesting facts about our "No. 1 Food Source".

The location for this exhibition wasn’t chosen by chance. In fact, there are very concrete reasons: It was here on the Mönchsberg, close to the historic Richterhöhe, that an imposing mountain reservoir for drinking water was constructed in 1950. It can hold up to 25 million liters of drinking water, is 8.5 m deep and is today part of the Water Museum. For decades, drinking water from springs and natural sources located in Salzburg’s surrounding communities has been pumped to this mighty holding tank, before continuing on its journey into the city itself: the broad network of pipes extends 870 km – roughly the same distance as from Salzburg to Copenhagen. The drinking water then pours from the taps into Salzburg homes, clear, clean and fresh with no further processing necessary. Something appreciated, not only by guests from around the world, but also by our local cooks and brewers. They are firmly convinced that the good taste of beef broth or local beer is mainly due to Salzburg’s outstanding water quality.

Historical, in some cases quite curious exhibits, including tools, instruments, pipes, machinery and artifacts, all originating from Salzburg and providing informative, entertaining insights into the history and present of the Salzburg water supply. This exciting journey through time leads us from the Roman cisterns in the Kaiviertel and on Makartplatz, to the hand-drawn water wells of the Middle Ages, and the extremely modern drinking water network we have today. With the Almkanal – a man-made canal that brought water from the Königsseeache in Berchtesgaden to the middle of Salzburg city – in the 12^th century, Salzburg’s prince archbishops were actually responsible for creating the oldest pipeline for drinking water in Central Europe.