Viennas prominent landmark, the Pestsäule (PlagueColumn), commemorates the devastating bubonic plagueepidemic of 1679 that killed thousands of the citys in-habitants. The gigantic, three sided marble pyramidiscovered with baroque clouds is dedicated to the Trinityand the Nine Choirs of Angels. Although pledgedby Emperor Leopold I in the very year of the outbreak ofthe disease, the memorial could not be completed until1694. Its imagery reflects some of the most tragic eventsbut also some of Austrias greatest triumphs, because theinvasion, siege, and repulsion of the Ottoman army in1683 added new meaning to the monuments concept.Viennas Pestsäule is now recognized as one of the mostinnovative and ambitious sculptural ensembles createdanywhere in Europe in the Post-Bernini era.
ALOIS NEBEL 
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