Page 202 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide 2016 - Austria

200  A USTRIA REGION b y REGION

whose last member died in the
12th century, during the Third
Crusade. Until the 19th century
Perg was the largest centre of
millstone production; it is also
the home of Manner, the largest
manufacturer of sweet wafers in
the world. Worth seeing today
are some attractive houses on
Herrengasse, a 1683 Baroque
pillory in the main square and
St Jacob’s church (1416), which
has retained its Gothic interior.
In Perg’s environs, graves and
numerous remains of the
Hallstatt civilization have been
unearthed. The Heimathaus
at No. 1 Stifterstrasse exhibits
finds from that period. It also
documents the production of
millstones and has an interesting
collection of 16th–17th-century
ceramics, decorated using a
One of the magnificent emperor’s rooms in St Florian Abbey special local technique.
3 St Florian incunabula and manuscripts.
Road map E3. * 6,000. @ The ceiling painting by 5 Kefermarkt
Tel (07224) 5690. Open Stift: Guided Bartolomeo Altomonte shows Road map E3. * 2,000. @
tours: 11am, 1, 3pm. Bruckner organ: the marriage of Virtue with Tel (07947) 75 700.
mid-May–mid-Oct: 2:30pm Wed–Fri, Knowledge. Next to the library is
Sun, Mon. & the Marble Hall with its vast The main attraction in this
columns, designed by Jakob little town is its 15th-century
Florian, the prefect of the Roman Prandtauer. The grand staircase Wallfahrtskirche (pilgrimage
Noricum Province, converted in the west wing, also by church), built by Christoph
to Christianity and was tortured Prandtauer, leads to the emperor’s von Zelking, the master of
and thrown into the Enns river apartments where important Kefermarkt’s castle, Schloss
as a result in 304. guests stayed. Weinberg. He also commis-
His body was Adjacent is the sioned its altar dedicated to his
retrieved and, in room of Anton favourite saint, St Wolfgang
the 11th century, Bruckner, who (died 994), Bishop of Regensburg
a magnificent was associated and Henry II’s tutor. We do not
abbey and a with St Florian for know who created the altar, but
church were built many years. the result is a masterpiece of
on the site of his Carlo Carlone medieval art. Entirely carved
burial place by Alter Codex from remodelled the from limewood, it was probably
Augustinian monks; the library of St Florian abbey church – his once painted, but now the
they remain the great master piece. original texture and colour of
keepers of St Florian to this day. Worth seeing inside are the the wood are revealed. Its centre
The present appearance of the stained-glass windows, the lovely is made up of the figures of
abbey and church is the work pulpit and the main altar with a Saints Peter, Wolfgang and
of two outstanding Baroque painting of the Assumption of Christopher. On the wings of
architects: Carlo Carlone and the Virgin Mary flanked by the altar the unknown artist
Jakob Prandtauer. columns of pink Salzburg marble. has placed scenes of the
St Florian is an impressive The abbey also has an art gallery. Annunciation, the Birth of
complex of buildings, with Christ, the Adoration of the
monks’ quarters, reception Magi and the Death of Mary.
rooms and a church with an 4 Perg The altar was once riddled
adjoining chapel of the Virgin Road map E3. * 8,000. @ £ with woodworm and only
Mary. The main feature in Tel (07262) 53150. narrowly escaped total destruc-
the large courtyard is the tion. It was carefully restored in
Adlerbrunnen (Eagle Well), built Perg, a small town with a long 1852–5, under the supervision
in 1603. The east wing houses history situated 30 km (19 miles) of Adalbert Stifter, a writer and
the library with its vast collection east of Linz, was once owned school inspector for Upper
of over 140,000 volumes, by the mighty von Perg family, Austria. It is to his dedication
For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp296–7 and pp320–21

200-201_EW_Austria.indd 200 03/09/15 5:43 pm
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Catalogue template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2.1)
Date 5th December 2012
Size 125mm x 217mm