Churches and monasteries

The Capuchin church and convent are located not far south of the Cathedral Square in Brixen/Bressanone. This is a simple and unadorned religious building with a small facade tower in the style of the mendicant churches. Inside, the nave is covered by a barrel vault. The strongly indented choir room just closes off. On the left side of the nave there is a round-arched side chapel which houses the organ. The interior has no wall paintings or stucco work.

The chapel was built in 1849 by the bricklayer Michael Kofler. It is dedicated to S. Maria Goretti - martyr of innocence.

In 1843, in Untersirmian, the small Heart of Jesus church was built, which is the first of a  few churches, which were consecrated to the heart of Jesus. The simple building houses a Baroque altar from the 18th Century (1713). The tower was finished in 1857.

Once upon a time on a hilly knoll in St. Valentin, a bull began to scratch and scrabble in the ground. It delved all day long without rest until a wanderer chanced along the way. As he came closer, he saw the crown of an enormous bell. The bell was then hung in the church of St. Valentin. And from that day on, the bell was known as "The St. Valentin bull", forever to be feared and hated by witches, as its toll dispels their storms. In Latzfons, further up and to the right in the Eisack valley, the following bell-tale is well known: In days gone by, the local people wanted to move the bell from St. Pauls to Kastelruth. Having failed to move it from its spot even with 40 pairs of oxen heaving, the bell suddenly began to speak: Maria Anna is my name The elements, my domain All the weathers I proclaim And in St. Paul´s I will remain. And there, indeed, she remained!

The Church of St. Anna and St. Joachim is similar to many Capuchin churches built in Tyrol in the 17th century. The nave is square and has a barrel vault. On the northern side a square-shaped side chapel has been added. The long chancel is divided into two rooms by a high altar that mostly reaches to the ceiling. The room behind the altar was originally reserved for the monks.

A small window opening in the altar table makes it possible to see through and thus participate in the Mass. Side altars are set against the triumphal arch walls. The main altar and the two side altars are Baroque and date from the 17th century.

Holy Mass:
Tuesday to Saturday at 9.00 in german language
Sunday at 10.00 in german language

next to the parish church is the "Cappella del Santo Sepolcro" (Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre, 17th century), with lagre marble angels and fígures depiciting Jesus Christ

The Saint Christoph Church, at the hill called "Vorbichl", was buil during the 13th Century. Today, only the tower with its double arch windows is still visible. The rest was restructured in 1603.

The chapel is reminiscent of the famous freedom fighter Peter Sigmayr. The Tharerwirt was shot 1810 from the Frenchmen near the Baumgartner farm.

The Joseph chapel at the 'Moartalalmwiese' (Moar Valley alpine meadow) was built in 1897 by the Association for Alpine Hotels. In the summer of the years prior to World War I, a mass was held there every day. For this reason, the management of the 'Grand Hotel Carezza' employed a hotel chaplain. In 1976, the parish of Nova Levante bought the chapel. Thereafter, the little church was renovated and extended. Today, it offers space for 200 people. The renovated chapel was consecrated on the 18th June 1983.

The sanctuary of the holy San Martino was probably built over a pagan sanctuary caveand dates from the 16th century. The San Martino statue still stands in a natural cave to day - hence the only proper name of San Martino in Monte. From San Martino you enjoy a particularly and beautiful view of the valley and in the Ortler mountains.

Built in 1735, at the site of a chapel dating from 1690. It is impressive because of the numerous frescoes and the pulpit with the inlayed Panels.

The Franciscan Church was consecrated by the archbishop of Bressanone in 1697. The church is characterised by being back to basics, as the friar churches built during the Counter-Reformation clearly differ from traditional Collegiate Churches dedicated to belongings and culture through their simple and clear method of construction (planning: Franciscan friar Vitus Rastbichler from the Ötztal Valley). The Order's ideal of simplicity and poverty is reflected in the absence of a high bell tower and complex vaults and frescoes. After the entrance there's the small Chapel of Saint Anthony annexed to the nave destined for private meditation. The Fathers originally recited the choral prayers from the gallery. Not much of what distinguished the initial version of the church remains to be seen today, with the exception of the large oil paintings behind the side altars and the Franciscan saints on the southern wall. Today's altars are nice examples of Rococo art. The careful restoration works performed between 1992 and 1994 provided the Convent with its original appearance. The restoration project was awarded the Europa Nostra Prize in June, 1994. Visiting hours: daily (except Monday morning) 8 am - 6.30 pm

holy grave open to Easter the holy grave ist  uniquely in South Tyrol

The Roman Catholic Church of the Congregatio Jesu in Brixen is consecrated to St. Joseph. The classicist building was owned by the Order of the English Misses until it was taken over by the Autonomous Province of South Tyrol in 2011.

The classicist façade is simple and is divided by four pilasters. These are crowned by a triangular gable. Above the rectangular portal there is a round-arched window.

In addition to stucco work by Franz Singer, there is a high altarpiece inside the church depicting the death of St. Joseph. It was probably painted around 1770 by Josef Anton Zoller for the parish church in Schmirn. To the left and right of it are the figures of St. Joachim and St. Anna.  On the left side altar is the painting of St. Philomena by Gebhard Flatz (1870), on the right side altar the communion of St. Antonius by Jakob Fink (1846) is shown. In the choir there is a ceiling painting with the representation of Jesus in the temple by Josef Mühlmann (1854). The other paintings and the neo-baroque decorative painting are by Johann Matthias Peskoller (1904).

Festivities:
S. Antonio da Padova: June 13 th
Francesco d’Assisi: October 4th

The first Franciscans came to Bolzano during the lifetime of S. Francesco, probably in 1221. In the framework of the reform guided by Bernardino of Siena a second propagation wave of the Franciscans took place. In this context the monastery foundations of Kaltern were built. Claudia de Medici, Provincial Princess of Tyrol and promoter of the Franciscan movement, donated the ruins of the Rottenburg to the Franciscans, which were destroyed at the beginning of the 15th century. Parts of the garden area for the construction of the church and monastery. At the beginning of the 18th century, the church was expanded to the present state. The image of St. Anthony of Padua on the right-hand side altar is of great importance for piety. The Antonius cycle in the cloister was painted in 1721 by Matthias Pußjäger.

Source: Parrish office Kaltern

The church of St. Martin was mentioned for the first time 1380.

Conciliar church dating back to the sixteenth century, with an adjoining monastery of the Capuchin friars. It is located adjacent to the Porta Venosta (Vinschger Tor) Gate. Masses in German: Weekdays: 6:30 a.m. Sundays and public holidays: 7:00 a.m. & 10:00 a.m. Masses in Italian: Weekdays: 7:30 a.m. Sundays and public holidays: 8:30 a.m.

The origin of the church Saint Egidio in Mittelolang date back to the period of the High Middleage. According to an ancient parchmen Viktor Gatterer discovered at the beginning of XIX Century in the parish archive of Niederolang, the church could have be consacrated on the 1st September 1138 by the bischof of Briexn Rembert to the Holy Trinity, the Victorious Cross and to the disciple Egidio. One of the fourteen aukiliary saints, Egidio was evoked from shepherd and hunters to be wokshipped as patron saint of livestock and plauge.

The Church of the holy cross was foundet in 1896 in gotic style.

The earliest mentions date back to 1220 and 1249. In 1499 the church was set on fire after the Battle of the Calven and was rebuilt as a Gothic church in 1570/1580. Excavations brought to light surprising results in the form of a predecessor church from the 6th/7th and 8th centuries. The patrocinium, however, points to the 9th century. Furthermore, parts of frescoes from the time before the first mentioning of the church were found, which turned out to be picture decorations of the Romanesque predecessor church and are of excellent artistic quality.


Open only for guided tours in german language on request (+39 0473 831097).

Tils with a late gothic church has been recently elevated to a parish. It is consecrated to St. Vitus, the old saint of the farmers, whose painful martyrdom is represented in the nave.

The original parish church of St. Walburga is thought to have already been in existence around 1203, and is located close to the permanent settlements by the stone river surfaces in Val Martello. The church was consecrated in 1440, it was extended in 1650, and an upper section was added in 1759. The neo-romanesque altar was completed in 1887.

The St. James Church is located near the pre-Christian burnt offering site of Tschaufis. The walls of the nave date back to the 12th century and the bell tower was built in Gothic style. The gothic winged altarpiece from 1517 is the most precious piece of the church.

Completely built in red porphyry. Built in 1899-1902 in the neo-Romanesque style, the lovely mosaic above the main portal was installed in 1903. The tower was only completed in 1930.

Holy mass:
Sunday at 10.30 in german language

From the pilgrimage church in Santa Maria, via several stations of the Cross, a meditation road (built in 1996) leads you to the oldest religious sanctum of the Alta Pusteria Valley: St. Peter am Kofl. It is said that the chapel was used as a refuge for some priests during the turmoil of the mass migrations from Aguntum (near Lienz in Eastern Tyrol). St. Peter am Kofl was first mentined in 1329 and later renovated in 1987.

St. Nicholas, the Patron Saint of miners, was held to be the protector of those in danger from water. In Eggen, it was believed that he protected the village against the raging waters of the Sam Brook and of the Gerold Brook. Until the curacy was built in 1681, Eggen was served by the parish of Deutschnofen / Nova Ponente. While St. Nicholas had the right to bury its dead parishioners as well as to read the Mass, since 1435, Eggen was ministered by a priest from Deutschnofen / Nova Ponente. With the establishment of the first curacy, this stopped, and in 1919, the curacy was elevated to the status of an independent parish. The church is open daily from 8:00 a.m. till 6:00 p.m.

For a long time, the entire religious life of the valley revolved around the church of La Pli/Pieve Marebbe. Once the most important house of prayer in the valley, records state that since the appointment of one Marquardus as the first pastor in 1214, Marebbe has always had its own resident pastor. Records dating back to 1347 list the church as the "parish church of the Virgin Mary of Marebbe".

Today, it is a grand four-naved Baroque church with a particularly beautiful wooden high altar, skilfully carved in Renaissance style in 1636 – at a time when the Black Death raged through the valleys. The centre features a statue of St. Mary of Graces. Both for the population of the Badia valley and many pilgrims from the Pusteria valley, this picturesque temple remains a well-loved and much-visited place of pilgrimage.

The Church of the Holy Cross Heilig Kreuz Kirche in Mitterlana is the central church in Lana and dates from the 20th century. The church was built during the term of office of the Dean, Rev. Alfred Delucca OT in the politically and economically difficult years between 1938 and 1943. The building was completed in 1950 and inaugurated during the Feast of Christ the King by Suffragan Bishop Oreste Rauzi of Trento.

The spherical roof of the tower is colloquially known as the Lana Apple by the local people. What is today's main parish church in Lana was built between 1938 and 1950 following plans by the famous Stuttgart church-builder, Otto Lindner, in the style of an ancient Roman basilica.

Holy Mass:
Saturday at 18.00 (in summer at 19.30) in german language
Sunday at 07.00 Uhr and 09.00 in german language