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At the center of the entrance cloister (above) stands this beautiful bronze statue
by the sculptor A. Selva. The work is based on the description given
by St. Gregory the Great, who wrote the biography of St. benedict's life.
He is standing, supported by monks after having received the Holy Communion.
This statue was a gift from the German Chancelor K. Adenauer in 1952.
Amazingly, only a couple of things remained after the allied forced dropped
500 tons of bombs on the Abbey. (It is amazing that anything remained)
The statue of St. Benedict (left) and the cell of St. Benedict (below) were
the survivors.
The statue on the left was done by sculptor P. Campi of Carrara in 1736.
It was virtually untouched during the bombings of 1944.
The two frescoes below are from the cell of St. Benedict. The cell
also survived the war. (probably because of its subterranean construction)
The paintings are said to be depictions of scenes that actually took
place in the room where they were painted. They are scenes from the
life of St. Benedict. The
lower left hand scene represents a vision St. Benedict had of his sisters
soul, in the form of a dove, departing for heaven. The scene below
represents the resurrection of a monk. |
