MELK'S MONESTARY

                                          An Imposing Monestary

In Melk, Austria I’ve visited the 400-year-old Benedictine monastery twice.  It is an impressive building and an interesting visit. Situated high on a hill between Salzburg and Vienna, it provides a superb view of the Danube river. Melk has played an important role in the Danube region since Roman times, when a fortress was built on the promontory overlooking the river. Today thirty-five monks live along with 750 male and female students who attend the private school which was added in the 12^th century. Melk has been a spiritual, intellectual  and cultural center of the country for more than 1000 years. During the monastery’s history, members of the Melk monastic community have achieved significant success in the fields of natural science and the arts.

Melk Abbey, German: Stift Melk, was originally a palace for the Babenbergs, then became a Benedictine monastery in 1089. The magnificent baroque building was built between 1702 and 1736. An extensive restoration was undertaken in 1978. The 600-foot long imperial wing, the longest in the monastery, is open to the public. The Emperors' Gallery is decorated with portraits of Austrian royalty.

            The Marble Hall contains pilasters coated in red marble and an allegorical painted ceiling by Paul Troger.

The two-story library has an absolutely beautiful fresco ceiling painted in 1732. Although the ceiling is flat the painting makes it look rounded. The fresco is the original and has never been restored. It looked like it had been done yesterday. No smoke or steam has ever entered the room so the colors have remained vivid. It is an absolutely amazing masterpiece.

The library also contains 80,000 volumes of priceless works. The shelf supports, covered to look like book bindings, are even trimmed in gold!

The highlight of the abbey, though, is certainly the Stiftskirche, Abbey Church. The church has an astonishing number of windows and is richly embellished with marble and frescoes. Especially noteworthy in the church are the magnificent frescoes.

The abbey restaurant located near the entrance serves hot meals and monastery wine in beautiful Baroque and outdoor surroundings. I enjoyed a delicious lunch in the basement restaurant on each visit. The area is large and they are obviously used to feeding large crowds. It was an interesting visit ending on the patio with its magnificent views.