Ceiling painting

The present buildings of Zwiefalten Abbey were constructed in German Baroque style from 1739-47 under the direction of Johann Michael Fischer, who began overseeing the work in 1741. The interior, considered a model of Baroque design, is filled with ornate chapels and gilded balustrades, dominated by the high altar, which combines a Gothic statue of the Virgin Mary dating from 1430 with Baroque additions (dating from about 1750) by Johann Joseph Christian (1706-1677). The elaborate frescoes are by Franz Joseph Spiegler, the stucco work by Johann Michael Feuchtmayer the Younger.

A beam of merciful light originates from the Virgin Mary, being reflected by a mirror held by an angel, and finally reaching St Benedict of Nursia. From Benedict, knowledge rains to Benedictine monks that are known as ardent admirers of Mary (Bernard of Clairvaux, Ildephons of Toledo, Hermann of Reichenau) and on defenders of the Faith (St Jerome, Rupert of Salzburg, St Dominic). On top of the scene is God the Father. Around the central scene, places of Marian pilgrimage: Genazzano (with Pope Urbanus VIII, Fourviere near Lyon (with King Louis XI of France), Santiago de Compostela, Einsiedeln, and Alt�tting, plus King Istv�n I of Hungary who consecrates himself and his kingdom to Mary.

The picture shows the ceiling painting in the former Benedictine abbey church.