Burgeis (, ) is the largest ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (: ''frazioni'') is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' ('municipality') in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidat ...

'' of the comune of

Mals Mals (; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) and a village in South Tyrol in northern Italy, located about northwest of Bolzano, on the border with Switzerland and Austria. History Coat-of-arms The emblem is party per fess: the upper of gules a ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and sits at an altitude of 1216m in

Vinschgau The Vinschgau, Vintschgau () or Vinschgau Valley ( ; ; ; medieval toponym: ''Finsgowe'') is the upper part of the Adige or Etsch river valley, in the western part of the province of South Tyrol, Italy. Etymology The German name ''Vinschgau'', li ...

South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...

beneath the mountain Watles (2557) on the upper reaches of the

Adige The Adige is the second-longest river in Italy, after the Po. It rises near the Reschen Pass in the Vinschgau in the province of South Tyrol, near the Italian border with Austria and Switzerland, and flows through most of northeastern Italy ...

. The name goes all the way back to a Roman founding, as a fort on the "

Via Claudia Augusta The Via Claudia Augusta is an ancient Roman road, which linked the valley of the Po River with Rhaetia (encompassing parts of modern Eastern Switzerland, Northern Italy, Western Austria, Southern Germany and all of Liechtenstein) across the Alp ...

", which runs through the village. This fort later gave the name of the Edelfreien von Burgus-Wanga, whose arms the village bears today. Burgeis has 828 inhabitants (March 2007) . It lies 2.5 Kilometer from

International relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

Burgeis is twinned with: *

Lohr am Main Lohr am Main (, ; officially: ''Lohr a.Main'') or Loa () is a town in the Main-Spessart district in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Lower Franconia (''Unterfranken'') in Bavaria, Germany and the seat (but not a member) of the ''Verwaltungsgemeins ...

, Germany *

Beilngries Beilngries (; ) is a town in the district of Eichstätt, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Altmühl and the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal, 30 km north of Ingolstadt. Sons and daughters of the city * Rosa Aschenbrenner (1885-19 ...

Bayern Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total land area of Germany, and with over 13.08 million ...

, Germany *

Weingarten Weingarten may refer to: Places * Weingarten, Württemberg, Germany, a town ** Weingarten Abbey * Weingarten (Baden), Germany, a municipality * Weingarten, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, a municipality * Weingarten, Thuringia, Germany, a village an ...

, Germany

History

The oldest account mentioning Burgeis is the Chronicle of the Benedictine Father, Goswin, who lived between 1320 and 1395 or so. This gives a wide reaching sketch of the place, of the history of Marienberg and of Obervischgau in the high Middle Ages. So we know more about Burgeis in the 12th century than many other, more important places.

Marienberg Abbey

Above Burgeis lies Europe's highest

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

abbey

Marienberg Marienberg is a town in Germany. It was the district capital of the Mittlerer Erzgebirgskreis (Central Ore Mountains district) in the southern part of Saxony, and since August 2008 it has been part of the new district of Erzgebirgskreis. As of ...

(at 1340 m). Its impressive

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

church and the Romanesque

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

(1160) belong to the most beautiful ?school of art? in Vinschgau. The Frescos in the crypt date from between 1175 and 1180. They were partly discovered in 1887 and in 1980 completely freed. Burgeis is the birthplace of the famous Baroque painter

Johann Evangelist Holzer Johann Evangelist Holzer (December 24, 1709 – July 21, 1740) was an Austrian-German painter. Holzer was born in Burgeis, Mals, in the Vinschgau Valley of South Tyrol, as the son of a miller. He was sent to undertake a classical course of ...

. File:Burgeis_Marienberg_Fuerstenburg_01.jpg, Marienberg Abbey and Fürstenburg File:Burgeis Marienberg.jpg, Marienberg Abbey in the fall File:Burgusio-Abbazia di Monte Maria.jpg, Marienberg Abbey File:Burgeis, die Maria Empfängniskirche Dm15732 foto7 2012-08-13 11.40.jpg, church: die Maria Empfängniskirche File:Tussen Burgeis en Sankt Valentin, panorama met moderne windmolen foto21 2012-08-13 12.16.jpg, panorama between Burgeis and Sankt Valentin

St. Stefan

The close of the Abbey contains a small church ''St. Stefan'', which dates back to the early days of Christianity in the 5th century, according to

archaeological dig In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

, although it got its current form in the 9th and 10th centuries.

Economy

There are many Hotels, Pensions and Guesthouses (Gasthöfe) in and around Burgeis, which today form the basis of a flourishing tourism industry, especially in the winter.

Neighboring Places

St. Valentin auf der Haide,

, Schlinig, Schleis, Planeil, Plawenn

Literature

*Hubert Walder / Helmut Stampfer: ''Romanische Wandmalerei im Vinschgau'', 2002, *Alfred Reichling: ''Orgellandschaft Südtirol'', Bozen 1982, S. 11f., 60-63.

External links

TourismusvereinBurgeis auf der Seite der Gemeinde Mals
{{Authority control Frazioni of South Tyrol