O.Cist. noviciates in Austria in 19th c.

Many abbeys rediscovered their Cistercian identities in the 19th century. Wilhering Abbey in Upper Austria is a good example. Homilies given during vesting ceremonies for novices in that monastery show how a venerable Austrian abbey became "more Cistercian" from generation to generation – in the early 1800s, the novices wore hats like the one above! The impressive abbey, located close to the city of Linz, had been founded in 1146 but had forgotten monastic observances like silence and enclosure during the Enlightenment and as a result of anti-monastic imperial decrees. Re-establishing a Cistercian identity at the abbey was a dynamic process led by influential personalities in the abbey. These men, in turn, were influenced by paintings, the scholarly study of architecture, celebrating jubilees, and — perhaps most of all — new biographies of Bernard of Clairvaux. Read more here.