Austria 500 Schilling Silver Coin 1986 St. Florian Monastery
Commemorative issue: 300th Anniversary of St. Florian's Monastery
Obverse: St. Florian's Abbey, two dates below, small shield lower left.
Lettering: 300 JAHRE BAROCKSTIFT ST.FLORIAN 1686 1986.
Engraver: Kurt Bodlak.
Reverse: Face value within a circle of the nine shields of the federal provinces of Austria, Coat of arms of Austria above the face value.
Lettering: · 500 SCHILLING · REPUBLIK · ÖSTERREICH.
Engraver: Edwin Grienauer.
Composition: Silver (.925).
Weight: 24 g.
Diameter: 37 mm.
Shape: Round.
St. Florian Monastery
St. Florian Monastery (German: Stift Sankt Florian) is an Augustinian monastery in the town of Sankt Florian, Austria. Founded in the early ninth century, and later refounded by Augustinians in the eleventh century, St. Florian is the largest monastery in Upper Austria, and rivals Melk Abbey and Klosterneuburg Monastery as among the most impressive examples of Baroque architecture in Austria. The monastery is dedicated to Saint Florian, whose fourth century grave lies beneath the monastery.
The monastery, named after Saint Florian, was founded in the Carolingian period. From 1071 it has housed a community of Augustinian Canons, and is thus is one of the oldest operational monasteries in the world following the Rule of St. Augustine.
Between 1686 and 1708 the monastery complex was reconstructed in Baroque style by Carlo Antonio Carlone, of whom St. Florian's is reckoned the masterpiece. After his death the work was continued by Jakob Prandtauer. The result is the biggest Baroque monastery in Upper Austria. The frescoes were created by Bartolomeo Altomonte.
Construction of the library wing was not begun until 1744, by Johann Gotthard Hayberger. The library comprises about 130,000 items, including many manuscripts. The gallery contains numerous works of the 16th and 17th centuries, but also some late medieval works of the Danube School, particularly by Albrecht Altdorfer.
In 1827 a Polish librarian, Father Josef Chmel, has found one of the oldest Polish literary artifacts, the Sankt Florian Psalter, in the monastery. The Psalter's name, Sankt Florian Psalter, comes from the place of this rediscovery.
In January 1941 the premises were taken over by the Gestapo and the monks were expelled. From 1942 the Reichsrundfunkgesellschaft ("Radio Society of the Third Reich") was based here under its general director Heinrich Glasmeier.