Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Oberösterreich

The foundation of the Sankt Wolfgang pilgrimage church goes back to a legend from 976. Bishop Wolfgang von Regensburg lived as a hermit on the Falkenstein and decided to build a first church. The location of the building was inspired by his famous "Axthrow", a divine dispensation. He threw an axe with the vow to build a church where he would find him again. When he found the axe after three days, he built the church at the site, a rocky hill next to the Wolfgangsee. In 1183 the church was first mentioned in a document as Aberseekirche (Abersee was the original name of the Wolfgangsee), which was renamed Capella St. Wolfgangi in 1194. The existence of a stone church is mentioned in 1291. Next to the church founded by Wolfgang von Regensburg, a Romanesque church was built, which met the requirements of the upcoming pilgrimages. That building was destroyed by fire in 1429. Abbot Simon Reuchling commissioned the construction of a new church, which was built as it still largely exists today. The most famous piece in the interior of the church is the “Pacher altar” (PiP2). This winged altarpiece is the only fully preserved altar by Michael Pacher, an important medieval artist from Bruneck. In 1481 it was brought from South Tyrol to Sankt Wolfgang and set up in the presence of Pacher. The altar is one of the most important art monuments in Salzkammergut and Upper Austria and has gained a worldwide reputation through the pilgrimage. Another highlight is the baroque double altar by T. Schwanthaler ( around 1675). Originally - so is said - this altar was to be erected instead of the “Pacher altar”, but Schwanthaler was so enthusiastic about that altar that he decided to erect his own at the present location. The fence around it indicates exactly the place where the first church, built by Bishop Wolfgang stood (main picture and PiP1). The church in Sankt Wolfgang is nowadays still one of the most significant pilgrimage sites in Central Europe.

Schärding - located along the river Inn - is known as a Baroque town with its numerous Baroque mansions and historic squares. The town was first mentioned in a document in 804 as an agricultural settlement "Scardinga". Shipping and trade - first only salt, then grain, wine, ores, glass, cattle, wood and textiles - made Schärding a wealthy city in the Middle Ages. During several wars Schärding had to suffer from looting and destruction. In the last days of the Second World War in 1945 the Americans bombed the city from the Bavarian side of the Inn, destroying and damaging many houses. In 1966, fifty restored town houses were declared a protected cityscape. The best example of this can be seen on the north-eastern side of the Oberer Stadtplatz (Upper Town Square) with mansions from the 16th to the 19th century. This row of buildings is called Silberzeile (Silver Lane), probably because of the rich merchants who settled here when the Inn was still an important trade route. The pastel-coloured facades date back to the late medieval guild colours, some of which are still valid to this day: Red for the Butchers’ Guild, Blue for the Bakers’ Guild, Green for the Wine Merchants’ Guild, and Yellow for the Brewers’ Guild.

Stift Reichersberg (Reichersberg Abbey) was founded in 1084. After the early death of their only son, Gebhard, who reportedly drowned in the nearby river Inn, nobleman Wernher von Reichersberg and his wife Dietburga founded a monastery near their castle. The advice to bring Augustinian Canons to Reichersberg probably came from Archbishop Gebhard von Salzburg, the brother-in-law of the founder. The first canons came from Saxony. The founder himself also ended up in the monastery after the death of his wife. Times of prosperity and adversity varied in the course of the following centuries. In 1624 the relatively small romanesque-gothic monastery complex was completely destroyed by a devastating fire. During the next years of the 17th century it was replaced by baroque new buildings, which today belong to the most important baroque buildings in Upper Austria. The complex is grouped around two courtyards. The most important buildings are located along the 123 meter long outer courtyard, an architectural jewel with arcades and the marble fountain. The fountain is crowned with a figure of St. Michael, the patron of the monastery. The abbey church of St. Michael was consecrated in 1644. The furnishings are late 18th century, with frescoes, marble side-altars and a beautiful pulpit; in 1883 the organ was widened. During the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) it had to struggle for its existence. In 1810 the monastery was placed under administration and seven years later monastic activities resumed. By ceding the Innviertel to Austria ("Peace of Teschen", 1779), the Reicherberg monastery escaped secularisation, but had to fight hard for its existence during the Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815): in 1809 the monastery fell to the French, then again to Bavaria, until it was finally reassigned to Austria in April 1816. In spite of great material and personal hardship, a regular monastic life was again possible. During World War II (1939-1945) the monastery was forced to provide a home for a flying school, but avoided being closed down. Nowadays the abbey is still owned and inhabited by Augustinian Canons.