Man and Environment

The Cultivated Landscape

The history of mankind is characterized bythe struggle with nature. Man, himself a part ofnature, began to cultivate and to control her. Startingfrom a natural landscape, he created a cultural one.

Through the geological structure of thelandscape, climate, and vegetation, nature set limits toman's settlement activities and cultivation. The use ofthe limited resources which were available demandedthat people adapt to the prevailing natural conditions.This led to the development of different economicsystems such as agriculture, mining, trade andindustry.

Towards the end of the eighteenth centurypeople started to appreciate nature both in terms ofits economic value and in terms of its aestheticqualities. Both the Alps and the Danube region be-came favourite areas for adventure and relaxation.Human cultural activities formed an integral compo-nent: the cultivated landscape and the agriculturalbuildings contributed as much as did the sacred andindustrial monuments.

St. Pankraz in the Ulten Valley, South Tyrol

Gottfried Seelos, dated 1871