Ptuj Castle

Visit one of the most splendid castles in Slovenia, home to the exceptional museum collections of the Ptuj–Ormož Regional Museum: from musical instruments and weapons to traditional carnival masks and magnificent tapestries. The view from the castle is especially photogenic, stretching over the red-tiled roofs and cobbled streets of Slovenia’s oldest town.

The museum collections in Ptuj Castle are particularly worth visiting for lovers of antiquity because of one of the most important exhibits of Ptuj’s rich archaeological heritage – the ancient double flute, or tibia, from the 2nd or 3rd century. The Romans believed it possessed magical powers, as its music was said to drive away evil spirits and summon good fortune.

The Ptuj Castle Hill, offering sweeping views far and wide, has been inhabited since the Late Stone Age, from the 5th millennium BC onward. In the time of ancient Poetovio, important public buildings stood on the hill, and in the early Middle Ages it was the site of a cemetery. The origins of the medieval fortress date back to the 11th century, when the castle and town were in the possession of the Salzburg archbishopric. In 1132, the archbishops granted the castle as a fief to the Lords of Ptuj, who, with a few interruptions, managed the castle and town for more than three hundred years. From 1656 to 1802, the castle was owned by the Scottish noble family Leslie. This was a brilliant period for the castle, as the Leslies transformed it into a Baroque residence. The last owners, the Counts of Herberstein, held the castle from 1873 until 1945, when it was nationalized and, along with its rich furnishings, incorporated into the Ptuj Museum.

Take a virtual tour of Ptuj Castle.