S P R I N G 2 0 1 5 | W E S T W O R L D 17
out the year, including Saskatchewan Writers
and Saskatchewan Stitches conferences. e
knitting retreat takes place twice a year, spring
and fall. As I gaze out over the wintry land-
scape, I'm already looking forward to coming
back later in the year when the apples have
been harvested, the honey collected and the
maple leaves turned glorious gold. W
For more information on the knitting retreats or to
request a brochure, contact Wendy Toye in Hum-
boldt at 1-800-344-6024; contact@hausof
stitches.ca. Reach the abbey at 306-682-1775;
guestmaster@stpeters.sk.ca.
Frescoes on High
THE GERMAN CATHOLICS who came to
St. Peter's Colony in 1903 first built a small log
church to the north of the monastery site. Five
years later, local immigrant carpenters and
volunteers rebuilt the church on a far grander
scale. At 36 metres long and with two
18-metre-tall towers, the structure stands as a
solid testament to faith. But what makes this
church astonishing is the interior. Its sanctu-
ary is emblazoned with frescoes depicting 80
life-sized figures of saints, each with a gilded
halo. This work, a gift to the first abbot of St.
Peter's Abbey, was painted by Count Berthold
von Imhoff, a famous pioneer artist from St.
Wahlberg whose religious paintings enrich
many pioneer churches throughout
Saskatchewan.
The church became St. Peter's Cathedral in
1921, has been renovated several times and was
declared a Municipal Heritage Property in 1984.
It lies just across Hwy. 5 from St. Peter's Abbey
and is open for visitors every day until 9 p.m.
(except for January and February). –L.B.
(l-r) Kevin Grieman, long-time knitter; Imhoff paintings
inside St. Peter's Cathedral – the artist gave some of
the saints the faces of abbey monks.
