Mount Sion
Berg Sion is a Premonstratensian monastery in the village of Uetliburg in the municipality of Gommiswald in the Swiss canton of St. Gallen .
history
The name is derived from the name Zion for the city of God Jerusalem . Uetliburg has been a place of pilgrimage since the Middle Ages due to its location on the pilgrimage route to Maria Bildstein and Einsiedeln . In 1761 the priest Josef Helg (1721–1787) initiated the foundation of the women's monastery. Today, Mount Sion is the only Premonstratensian monastery in Switzerland that is still operated as such. From 1774 to 1806 the Berg Tabor monastery , founded from here, existed in Jestetten Castle .
Attractions
From 1763–1786 the elongated monastery complex was built on a terrace high above the Linth plain . The monastery church in the late baroque style is particularly worth seeing . The ceiling paintings by an unknown artist are inspired by the Rococo style and are of remarkable quality. The three altars date from the time the church was built. The high altar has an altarpiece with the Sacred Heart motif and has housed relics of St. Venturinus since 1827 . The Baroque Way of the Cross, consisting of 14 paintings, dates from 1769 . The Loreto Chapel , consecrated in 1765, is completed by a neo-baroque altar wall from 1925.
literature
- Bernhard Anderes: Berg Sion women's monastery near Gommiswald SG. (Swiss Art Guide, No. 547). Ed. Society for Swiss Art History GSK. Bern 1990, ISBN 978-3-85782-474-6 .
