City History Science Talk: Facts and Fiction "Am Weiher" – On Historical Sources and Their Significance for Literature

In the "Science Talk", the event series on urban history, the writer Brita Steinwendtner provides insights into her novel "Am Weiher", published in 2026. The text, praised by Karl Markus Gauß as "one of the best Austrian novels of the 21st century", tells three fictional women's biographies centered around the Leopoldskroner Weiher – a place that serves as a symbol of memory and Europe's collective consciousness.

Steinwendtner explains her working methods, particularly the importance of historical sources for her literary work. Her research led her to the Salzburg City Archive, where she traced the traces of a lost young woman. The connection between facts and fiction is explored in a discussion with literary scholar Manfred Mittermayer and historian Johannes Hofinger. The event is moderated by Sabine Veits-Falk, head of the City Archive, who facilitates the exchange between literature and historical science.