Maria Rickenbach Monastery

Description

Maria Rickenbach Monastery was initially established after a 1528 painting of the Blessed Mother was placed in a hollow maple tree on that site. Subsequently, unable to remove the painting, which came to be considered miraculous, the church and monastery were established around the tree, which is now enclosed by a shrine.

In 1857, a small group of women who wanted to follow a monastic way of life acquired the monastery. There they established the practice of Perpetual Adoration as a part of their life. The monastery is often associated with Engelberg Abbey, under the guidance of which they were established and later became formally incorporated into the Benedictine Order.

It is accessible to the public only by cable car from Niederrickenbach Station on the Luzern–Stans–Engelberg railway line.