Narrenturm (asylum)

The Narrenturm is an 18th-century circular tower in Vienna originally built in 1784 as an institution for the mentally ill. It is one of the city’s distinctive historic hospital buildings and now serves a museum function.

Inside the building visitors encounter medical and pathological displays including preserved anatomical specimens and historical medical instruments arranged in museum galleries. The architecture is a compact, multi-storey rotunda with small cells that were once used as patient rooms and are now exhibition spaces.

Constructed in 1784, the tower was built to house patients and to separate them from the general hospital wards; its uses changed over the 19th and 20th centuries and parts of the building were repurposed for museum collections. Over time the site shifted from clinical use to cultural and museum use, with the pathological collections becoming the principal public attraction.

Situated in Vienna’s Alsergrund district near the historic medical complex, the Narrenturm is within the inner city and reachable by central Vienna public transport.

• Collection type: Contains preserved wet specimens and anatomical preparations; photography may be restricted in some galleries.
• Access: Located within walking distance of Vienna General Hospital in the Alsergrund district, making it accessible by public transport.

What to See #

• Pathological-Anatomical Museum: Houses the Federal Pathological-Anatomical Museum with displays of preserved anatomical and pathological specimens, medical instruments and historical exhibits related to clinical medicine.