Garsten#

Garsten, Upper Austria, market town in the district of Steyr-Land, alt. 304 m, pop. 6,071, area 53.19 km2, situated in Enns valley south of Steyr. Run-of-river power stations: Rosenau (built 1953, 134,400 MWh) and Garsten-St. Ulrich (built 1967, 143,200 MWh), Christkindl provincial nursing home; 57 % of those employed (1991) work in the service sector (personal, social, public services, trade); economic activity characterised by small and medium-sized enterprises (construction materials works, carpenter´s workshop etc.), the largest enterprises are the dairy and the Lagerhaus agricultural co-operative. - The monastery complex (founded as a Benedictine abbey 1082, dissolved 1787) has served as a prison since 1850. The former abbey church (today parish church) is a magnificent Baroque building (1677-1685) by P. F. Carlone and his sons, C. A. and G. B. Carlone; completed by J. Prandtauer and consecrated in 1693; rich interior with stuccowork and frescoes (Grabenberger brothers), paintings by F. de Neve, P. Strudel, J. v. Sandrart and J. K. von Reslfeld (buried in the crypt); burial monuments of the Losenstein family (Berthold monument 14th century); Losenstein chapel (1687); monastery museum; Concerts in the monastery in June.