According to legend Charlemagne was travelling over the Umbrail Pass, having been crowned as King of the Lombards, when he was caught in a snowstorm. He came away unharmed and in gratitude founded the convent of St. John; the stucco statue in the church is a testimony to this. Built originally as a monastery, the complex has housed a convent of nuns since the 12th century. Since its foundation over 1200 years ago, the convent has always been lived in.
Müstair is the easternmost village in Switzerland. The valley, which bears the same name – Val Müstair – opens towards the Venosta valley in South Tyrol. The local language is Romansh; the village name Müstair is the Romansh equivalent of Minster in English, both of which correspond to the Latin “monasterium” or monastery. Thus it can be said that the village and the valley take their name from the convent.
In its over 1200 years of existence the convent was never completely destroyed and always only partially altered. The building complex we see today is a conglomeration of buildings of varying styles and different eras that fit together and intermingle. The church and chapel of the Holy Cross date from the time of the foundation (8th century). The 10th century Planta tower and the 11th century bishop’s residence are just two further examples of architectural highlights in the convent complex
In 1983 the Convent of St. John in Müstair was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List. At that time the convent complex had fallen into disrepair. Sr. Pia Willi, the convent’s prioress from 1986-2013, remembers that the roofs leaked and that whenever it rained the nuns had to use buckets to catch the water. She and her fellow sisters were quite astonished when the convent was designated a World Heritage Site. It must be said that since as early as 1969 the Pro Kloster St. Johann in Müstair Foundation had been striving to take care of the restoration and maintenance of the complex.
The determining factor for the convent’s inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List was the presence of the wall paintings in the convent church - the largest and best preserved cycle of medieval frescoes. Over the years, and thanks to archaeological research, further building history showpieces have been discovered: the Planta tower (the oldest fortified residential tower in the Alps), the Carolingian chapel of the Holy Cross, the Romanesque bishop’s residence, to name just the most important.
In Carolingian times, the church was painted down to the last corner, a large part of the Carolingian wall paintings can still be seen today. The film was made in 2013 for the exhibition "Charlemagne and Switzerland" in the Swiss National Museum. Concept and direction by Denise Tonella. The video was filmed in the convent church of St. John in Müstair.
The convent of St. John in Müstair is located at the easternmost tip of Switzerland on the border with South Tyrol (I) in the middle of the Alps. The convent is not only a UNESCO World Heritage Site but also and above all a centre of Benedictine spirituality. It is still inhabited by Benedictine nuns.
