| Austria: the pieta of Maria Taferl |
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| Maria Taferl is the regional sanctuary of Lower Austria. The object of devotion is a gothic pieta, a statue of Mary with the dead body of Christ. From the beautiful basilica of Maria Taferl (see picture), near Pöchlam, one can see the river Donau. The shrine is located on top of the Taferl mountain. The Taferlberg used to be a place for ancient Celtic sacrifices. Until the seventeenth century people came to the mountain for processions and other rituals. At the centre of this pagan tradition was the stone on which traditionally the sacrifices were performed. Today, this stone can still be found near the shrine. |
| The story of the oak tree Near the pagan site of ritual stood an oak tree with a crucifix attached to it. In the seventeenth century a local shepherd, Thomas Pochmann, wanted to cut down this old tree. However, as soon as he would try to do so he would cut himself. Thomas saw this as a sign that the crucifix did not want to be removed from the site and left the tree alone. A few years later, the ill and depressed Alexander Schinagl replaced the crucifix with a statue of the Sorrowful Mother. One night, when Alexander had just bought the statue from a woodcarver, he heard a voice say: “If you want to be healed, then bring the statue to the oak tree on the Taferl mountain near Marbach.” He did so, and soon thereafter he was cured from his ailments. Alexander’s family and friends were the first who started visiting the tree with the pieta. When the miracle became more widely known, greater groups of people came to visit the statue on the mountain. The miracles of the flags Between 1658 and 1661 thirty alleged miracles took place on the Taferl mountain. People witnessed white and red flags move round the statue. Eighteen figures were seen in the sky and twelve on the ground. At the time, these events made Maria Taferl one of the most popular shrines of Austria. In 1760 alone, over 700 processions were held and 19.000 masses were said in honour of Our Lady of Maria Taferl. The rise and fall of the shrine In 1755 a fire destroyed the old oak tree and seriously damaged the miraculous image. This did not stop the pilgrims from visiting the shrine of Maria Taferl. The shrine’s popularity declined significantly in the nineteenth century. However, this changed just after the Second World War when people came on pilgrimage to the Mater Dolorosa in great numbers again. In 1947 the pope granted the church of Maria Taferl the title of basilica. Annually, 300.000 people still visit the mountain on which the shrine of the pieta of Maria Taferl is situated. |
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| The baroque church of Maria Taferl was build between 1660 and 1724 and is a basilica since 1947 |
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