Schloss Dorfheim

Schloss Dorfheim stands on the western edge of Saalfelden, along the road to Leogang. Its outward appearance still suggests a castle, with a tall hipped roof and two surviving corner towers facing south. Inside, little remains of its former grandeur, leaving only the shell of its medieval structure. The castle’s origins are unclear, but records from 1331 first link it to the Vogtturm in Zell am See and the Hunt family, illegitimate descendants of the Counts of Plain. By 1369 the Hunts made Dorfheim their seat, and in the late 14th century they adopted the name ‘von Dorf’. Members of this family held important posts such as Pfleger of Lichtenberg and judge at Lofer. The most notable was Wiguleus Hund von Sulzemoos, who in 1582 published the first printed history of Salzburg. After several changes of ownership, the building was gutted by fire in 1901. Martin Hartl, a local farmer, bought the ruins in 1912 and rebuilt it as a working farm with tenants. The site still functions as a farm today, surrounded by kitchen gardens, orchards and two fishponds.