St. Martin (Laas)

St. Martin in Laas

St. Martin (bottom left) with the entrance to the Lasa Valley

West side

The St. Martin Chapel is located on the flank of the Nördersberg south of Laas (South Tyrol) at the entrance to the Laas Valley .

history

The building is mentioned for the first time in 1323, but is likely to be of older origin. Martin's patronage indicate the Frankish Empire . The chapel stands at 1030  m slm on a moraine hill , which in turn is an extension of the Schafspitze ( 2746  m ). The pottery shards, Roman glass, bronze situle sheets and minor prehistoric building remains that were found there allow the conclusion to be drawn to a former cult site. This is underpinned by the fact that numerous churches have been built over a prehistoric place in South Tyrol , for example the nearby churches of St. Sisinius , Mariä Visitation , St. Peter or St. Veit am Tartscher Bichl . Experts believe that the foundations of an older building are most likely under the chapel .

In the chronicle of the Vinschgau churches at the beginning of the 20th century, Father Adelgott Schatz from Marienberg Monastery notes about St. Martin:

"... remodeling, probably just the vault from 1416"

This reference dates from the beginning of the 15th century and can be found in the archive of the city of Merano .

"Johann Marian Rector of the Johannes Bapt. Church in Laas praised, with the consent of the Deutschhauskomtur zu Schlanders, Hanns Stetpeck, to mention the parish of Laas every Sunday from the pulpit of the separate knight Hilprands von Jaufenburg from Passeier, because he allocated 12 MB for the construction of the St. Johannes and St. Martin churches Laas, the provosts of said churches promise 1 goose and fish to the value of 1 Pf.B. to deliver"

John mentioned in the quote is the first pastor of Laas known by name .

In all probability, however, the construction was not yet completed in 1496, as the land register of St. Martin's Church notes for that year:

"Hans telfser sat zu Glurns has a good suspicion to be of help and consolation and all of his people in front of him have arranged and created his hayl wylln ain Eyssne kue to read the new pau Sandt marteins and with shallichm weyl and he hold the same kue So should he have annual interest from the bemeltn capell six march schmaltz and the yetzgemeltn interest should be discovered by the kyrchpröpdt from the demeltn capell all year since the bemelt hans sat "

also:

"Hans Müller auff tanas has an Eysn kue from the Capell Sandt Martein and so from the annual interest of the registered Capell VI kr. All pledge is good "

.

or:

"Item Peter Parnuyer on the gravayr Hoff has vyer Eysn küe from the capell Sandt Martein da von sol er järlichn zynsn the mocked capell from ainer yedn kue six kr. pfandt is all his right. So on the grafayr Hoff gets to be heard "

(Eyssne kue or eysn kühe → Iron Cows )

Furthermore, interest is listed in the tax register under the income that was administered by the church provosts. It was barley , rye , wax and interest. Money was given for the ownership of the Iron Cows; six Kreuzers were to be paid for each cow. The "Stoffel with the churtzn arm" owed the six cruisers and gave a meadow on the "Sandt" as a deposit.

Building

The relatively unadorned structure is oriented from west to east. It has a polygonal choir . The barrel vault on stitch caps rises above a rectangular floor plan. The nave is illuminated by two lunette windows on each of the long sides and a small round barred window on the narrow sides. On the north side facing Lasa there is a small bell tower and the entrance, which is accessible via a staircase.

The altar is equipped with a column structure with volutes and vase inserts, as well as a curved gable with the dove of the Holy Spirit. On the left of the altar there is a small coat of arms , on the right there is a cartouche with the inscription "Communitas". The antependium is painted with flowers and St. Martin and a goose and probably dates from the 17th century. Apart from three votive pictures , dated 1790, 1791 and 1794, there is no wall decoration. The altarpiece, a St. Oil painting showing Martin on horseback, handing a piece of his cloak to the beggar, two figures of saints in soldiers' costume - St. George with the dragon and St. Moritz with a cross on the shield - as well as a statue of Christ and probably one of St. Aloisius statue has been relocated.

At the beginning of the 20th century, St. Mass read. In the Book of Heralds of 1904 it can be read that in June on two consecutive days at 6 o'clock in the morning a St. Mass for the upper Alm and the following week for the lower Alm was held. As long as the marble blocks from the quarries in the Lasa Valley were still being driven away by carts, the chapel was the station for the carters, who were praying about this dangerous work here.

Today the chapel is only used on the occasion of the petition to Martini, to which St. Mass is held. At the wheel striking Sunday (the first Sunday of Lent) the young people leave the glowing discs from here roll downhill and autumn when cattle drive announce their arrival shepherd of the chapel with their whips (Goaßlschnölln) to.

In 1990 the roof was re-covered with shingles.

The chapel is not open to the general public.

Footnotes

1. ↑ The monetary interest was calculated in Kreuzers and Bernese pounds. 12 cruisers cost one pound Berner - 5 pound Berner one guilder

literature

• Gertraud Laimer Tappeiner: Churches of Laas, Eyrs, Tschengsl and Tanas. Ed. Parish of Laas, Verlag Tappeiner, Lana 2011, p. 54.

Web links

Commons : St. Martin  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Entry in the monument browser on the website of the South Tyrolean Monuments Office

Coordinates: 46 ° 36 ′ 26.3 "  N , 10 ° 41 ′ 52.8"  E