Holed stones of Joglland

One of the mysteries of the picturesque region of Joggland, located in north-eastern Styria, is the presence of curious holed stones scattered throughout the landscape. Intrigued after hearing about them from a friend, I decided to visit the municipality of Vorau—the commercial and cultural heart of the region—to learn more about these unusual free-standing stones, and perhaps enjoy a meal at a nearby restaurant.

Thanks to the kindness of the hostess, I soon found myself equipped with maps and informational brochures—some of which repeated facts I’d already encountered online. Nevertheless, their physicality gave them a special value. There’s something about printed literature: its tangible nature, the comforting absence of artificial light, and how my eyes seem to move more purposefully across a page than they do while scrolling a tablet just before sleep.

Making it before the storm

Even before entering the restaurant, rain had begun to fall. During the meal, it grew heavier. And by the time I stepped back outside, thunder was rolling. The prospects of my little escapade seemed doubtful—especially since the dog accompanying me clearly disliked the sound of the storm.

Still, determined to see at least one of these mysterious stones before the weather worsened, I headed towards the intersection of Unterer Riegersbachweg and Hasplweg, just outside the village center. There, I encountered a striking free-standing stone, about 180 cm tall and pierced twice—just as shown in the title photo.

I examined one of the holes more closely, but lacking expertise in this field—and with time having eroded many of the technical traces—I couldn’t determine how the hole had been drilled or gouged. According to a website maintained by researchers studying the history of these artifacts [1], the holed stones found in this region fall into two broad categories: megaliths, meaning ancient stone structures of unknown origin and purpose, and objects shaped during the early Middle Ages to serve as boundary markers.

The second stone

Having made the choice to leave the area due to the worsening weather, I unexpectedly stumbled upon yet another of these curious holed stones—this one positioned right in front of a house, directly beside the street.

This particular stone had only a single opening. Since it appeared broken, I suspected that a second hole might have once existed in the now-missing fragment.

As of 2024, approximately 582 such stones have been discovered in the region [2], Joggland is also home to underground tunnels and hidden passageways [3], some well-documented, others shrouded in antiquity, their origins lost to time.

Modern Megaliths

Due to the deteriorating weather, my fieldwork didn’t extend to the popular hiking route known for featuring several of these holed stones  [4]. Still, the materials I collected clarified an important distinction: not every large stone is an ancient megalith. While some truly date back to prehistoric times—even here in Styrian Joggland—others were shaped in the medieval period, possibly as boundary markers or local landmarks.

The same month I also passed through the district of Waidhofen an der Thaya in Lower Austria. Spotting what looked like a dense cluster of megaliths, I pulled over to investigate. But after reading the nearby information board and doing some quick research online,  [5] I realized I was standing not before prehistoric relics—but amid a contemporary work of landscape art.

Back to Joglland

The route for exploring Styrian megaliths and medieval boundary stones is well documented online [6]. The region’s scenic charm invites hikers, while the mystery surrounding the megaliths and underground passageways of the Vorau area is sure to intrigue many a traveler. I, too, hope to return someday—to once again wander these paths with my dog, and to journey in imagination to a distant time when ancient craftsmen labored to pierce and shape the holed stones of Joggland.

The article is a semi-machine translation of the original in Polish.

External links

to German-language materials:

1. [↑] subterra-vorau.at/menhire-und-lochsteine
2. [↑] Ibid
3. [↑] subterra-vorau.at/unterirdische-gänge
4. [↑] bergfex.at
5. [↑] waidhofen-thaya.at
6. [↑] steiermark.com