Mauer is a village in the municipality of

Dunkelsteinerwald The Dunkelsteinerwald is a hill country south of the Danube in the Mostviertel region of Lower Austria. It is located at the shore of the Danube between Melk and Mautern, south of Krems. The principal towns of the region are Bergern im Dunk ...

, in the

Mostviertel (English: ''Most Quarter'') is the southwestern quarter of the four quarters of Lower Austria (the northeast state of the 9 states in Austria). It is bordered on the north by the Danube and to the south and west by the state borders of Styria ...

Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Since 1986, the capital of Lower Austria has been Sankt P ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

History

The designations ''muri'', ''ad mura'', ''apud mura'' or the German designations ''Mour'' or ''Mower'' were mentioned as early as in the 11th and 12th centuries. In 1083, the village was mentioned, the church in 1096 for the first time in recorded history. The name indicates that medieval settlers encountered remnants of walls, probably from

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

times. The parish church of Mauer goes back into the earliest days of the settled history of the

. The powerful

Counts of Formbach Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

created it 1096. Around 1110, ownership was transferred to

Göttweig Abbey Göttweig Abbey (german: Stift Göttweig) is a Benedictine monastery near Krems in Lower Austria. It was founded in 1083 by Altmann, Bishop of Passau. History Göttweig Abbey was founded as a monastery of canons regular by Blessed Altmann (c ...

Economy and infrastructure

The place is a part of the market municipality Dunkelsteinerwald, which maintains a local building with a fire department, a municipal office and a registry office in the center. Some farms characterize the place. Since there are only one baker's shop and a few small individual enterprises, the lack of local infrastructure induces the municipality to orient itself strongly towards the neighbouring municipality of

Loosdorf Loosdorf is a town in the district of Melk in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. History The first-known mention of Loosdorf, then referred to as "Ladestorf," dates to 1145. Even from this period, the town had a strong connection to the nea ...

. The local centre was extended substantially only during the last few decades, with a core settlement of a single-family house forming its centerpiece. The significance of the village is strongly connected substantially to the importance of a carved altar, which is why the local church is particularly worth mentioning.

Buildings

The pilgrimage church at Mauer bei Melk, which belongs to the

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

of Göttweig was one of the oldest buildings of the area, but none of it has been preserved to this day. Possibly, the original church was a timber construction, as is reported in the Vita Altmanni. The possessions of Mauer parish, increased considerably in the 14th and 15th centuries. The oldest part of the parish church probably dates back to this time. The two side ships were built in that time, while the high choir was built around 1300. The church was to be expanded during the 15th century, but the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

halted further building activity, because the Mr. von Albrechtsberg, who belonged to the promoters, had converted to the new doctrine. The gothic tower was built in the last phase. The old vestry was built at the same time as the choir, in extension of the northern side ship. In the

baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

period, the equipment of the church was renewed.

Geographic coordinates The geographic coordinate system (GCS) is a spherical or ellipsoidal coordinate system for measuring and communicating positions directly on the Earth as latitude and longitude. It is the simplest, oldest and most widely used of the various ...

Roman bridge near Mauer

The Bridge dates back to the 3rd or 4th century.

Bibliography

* Floßmann, Gerhard; Kirchenführer ''Wallfahrtskirche Mauer bei Melk'', 1998 * Wirth, Theobald; ''Der Schnitzaltar von Mauer bei Melk'', in: das münster. Heft 2, 152 - 157, 1997 * ''Der Schnitzaltar von Mauer bei Melk, 206. Sonderausstellung der österreichischen Galerie Belvedere in Wien'', Wien 1997 * Michaela Maria Schuller, ''Der Altar von Mauer bei Melk - ursprüngliches Aussehen und ursprüngliche Ikonographie'', Diplom-Arbeit, Universität Wien, 2003 * Feuchtmüller, Rupert: ''Der Schnitzaltar in Mauer bei Melk. Ein Wunder der Gotischen Schnitzkunst'', Verlag Niederösterreich, Pressehaus, 1955 * Feuchtmüller, Rupert; Santol, Eugen: ''Der Schnitzaltar in Mauer bei Melk'', St. Pölten, Wien, Niederösterreichisches Pressehaus, 1975 Roemerbruecke-002.jpg, Roman bridge near Mauer Roemerbruecke-walter.jpg Roemerbruecke-001.jpg Roemerbruecke-weg.jpg {{DEFAULTSORT:Mauer Bei Melk Cities and towns in Melk District