Einsiedeln
[key], town, Schwyz canton, E central Switzerland. Einsiedeln is the most
famous pilgrimage center in Switzerland and one of the most noted in Europe.
Its important Benedictine abbey, founded in the 10th cent., was built on the
supposed site of the cell of St. Meinrad, a 9th-century martyr. The
monastery (rebuilt in the early 18th cent.) is one of the largest and finest
examples of Swiss baroque architecture. Its church contains the sacred image
of the “Black Virgin,” a wooden statue discolored by
candle-burning through the centuries. The townspeople annually perform
The Great World Theater, a religious play by
Calderón. Paracelsus is said to have been born in the town; Zwingli
was (1516–18) a priest there. Einsiedeln today is a popular winter
resort and home to printing, machinery, and furniture-making industries.
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