Felsenkapelle (Matrei in Osttirol)

The rock chapel from the outside

The rock chapel , also the chapel of Mary's birth , Gschlöß chapel or Maria-Schnee-Kapelle is a chapel in Matrei in East Tyrol and one of the listed objects of the community .

location

View through the gable wall to the outside

The rock chapel is located in the Gschlößtal in the north of the municipality of Matrei in Osttirol ( cadastral municipality of Matrei in Osttirol Land ) at an altitude of around 1690  m above sea level. A. It is located on the left bank of the Gschlößbach on the road between the Alpine settlements of Innergschlöß and Aussergschlöß , which are each a little over half a kilometer away. The rock chapel belongs to the Tauer fraction , with the village of Tauer with the Matreier Tauernhaus located around three kilometers to the east.

history

The sacred building in the Gschlößtal goes back to a chapel that was built in 1688 by the alpine pasture owners of the valley. However, since the Archdiocese of Salzburg had doubts about the sense of a chapel in this area, the Archpriest of Gmünd in Carinthia was asked for a statement. The archpriest, who was in charge of the parishes in the part of East Tyrol that belonged to Salzburg, was skeptical about the building of the church and denounced the "dissolute" life of the alpine residents. Above all, the illegitimate pregnancies were criticized by him. The Salzburg church authorities then banned the construction of the chapel. However, this had already been almost completed by the alpine pasture owners from their own resources. This and the high level of approval that the chapel found prompted the church authorities to approve the chapel.

The original chapel was located in an avalanche prone area and was destroyed twice by an avalanche. As a result, the chapel was moved into a mighty boulder in 1870, the natural cave of which was expanded into a natural stone vault. The measurement license was granted in 1880. Between 1969 and 1970 the chapel was renovated and rededicated on September 6, 1970.

Building

Altar of the rock chapel

The chapel was set up in or under a boulder , to which a tower facade made of field stones was presented. The gable wall is broken through by a pointed arch portal , two pointed arch windows and a round window above the entrance portal and has a short, stone- covered gable roof and a stone tower with three pointed-arch sound windows . The top of the tower is formed by a flat gable roof with a cross.

The interior of the chapel is shaped by the natural stone vault , which has a barrel-like vault . The interior walls are plastered up to the curve and the floor is covered with natural stone slabs. In the apse, which is one step higher, there is a wooden altar with dark marbling and gilding . It houses a shell cone with a wooden standing cross from the end of the 19th century; in the extract there is a representation of the Holy Trinity . Other furnishings are among others wrought iron offertory , a painting of the Archangel Michael from the 18th century and an alabaster - Virgin Mary under a crucifix , which was already in the original chapel.

literature

• Bundesdenkmalamt (Ed.): The art monuments of the political district of Lienz. Part III. Iseltal, Defereggental, Kalsertal, Virgental. Verlag Berger, Horn 2007 ISBN 978-3-85028-448-6 (Austrian Art Topography, Volume LVII)
• Siegmund Kurzthaler: History - Art - Culture. Encounters in the Hohe Tauern National Park region. Innsbruck 1997

Web links

Commons : Felsenkapelle Gschlößtal  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 47 ° 7 ′ 35.2 ″  N , 12 ° 27 ′ 43.5 ″  E