St. Peter's Monastery

The Monastery of St. Peter in Salzburg was founded by St. Rupert during his missionary activities around the year 700. Archaeological finds on the territory of the monastery give reason to believe that it was built not from scratch, but on the remains of the Romanesque church. In the Middle Ages, the monastery had an excellent school of scribes. One of the works of the Monastery School St. Peter’s Octopus (1160) is now kept in the Austrian National Library.

The surviving buildings, built in the Romanesque style, underwent a large-scale reconstruction in the XVII-XVIII centuries. This period was the heyday of the Baroque, which was reflected in the appearance of the restored monastery, although elements of the Romanesque style are still guessed. By the XVII century, the monastery became not only the center of religious life, but also a cultural object: it was in the monastery environment that the first University of Salzburg was born.

From the moment of its foundation to the present day, the Monastery of St. Peter is an active male monastery of the Benedictine Order. Only a small part of the abbey is open to tourists, including the church and the local cemetery. This is enough to love this place forever. Someone here is attracted by the magnificent decoration of the cathedral in the Rococo style with air ceilings, carved columns, lush stucco and wonderful frescoes. Another is struck by the ancient catacombs in Mount Monschberg, where the first Christians took refuge. Someone comes here to venerate the relics of St. Rupert, and someone will be interested in walking through the monastery cemetery, the oldest in Salzburg. They say it is still valid, but it takes about 100 years to get there. A pleasant bonus to the tour can be a local store, which sells excellent monastery wine, fresh bread, church utensils.