This tiny, charming place of silence and meditation was dedicated to the patron saint of cattle. 300 year-old frescoes illustrating the history of Jesus' life were uncovered during restoration work in 1993.
Voel de spirituele kracht van deze plaatsen, bewonder de Romaanse architectuur en gotische fresco's of ontsnap gewoon even aan het leven van alledag. Ontdek de bijzonderheden van de vele kerken, kapellen en kloosters uit verschillende tijdperken en stijlen.
This tiny, charming place of silence and meditation was dedicated to the patron saint of cattle. 300 year-old frescoes illustrating the history of Jesus' life were uncovered during restoration work in 1993.
Until 1860 the name of the Zallinger pastures was ‚Sassegg‘ which is Ladin-Bajuwaric meaning ‚hill on the big rock’, hence on the Plattkofel massif. From 1854, Karl von Zallinger-Stillendorf from Bozen/Bolzano with Bavarian origins is mentioned as proprietor. It was he who in 1857 prompted the building of the modest neo-Gothic chapel consecrated to the Virgin Mother. One year later, the little church was solemnly inaugurated. After its restoration in 1993, the Zallinger church needed a new facelift on the occasion of its 150th jubilee. The works were accomplished in autumn 2007 thanks to the generous backing of neighbours and sponsors. On July 28 2008 the accomplishment of the restoration was worthily celebrated.
Kastelruth's exceptionally imposing, free-standing bell tower already beckons to visitors from a great distance. The tower and church form a captivating achitectural ensemble together with the town hall and the houses built around the church square by leading citizens. It is no coincidence that this village's historical core has been selected as one of the most beautiful in Italy.
The Parish Church of Kastelruth – also known as the “cathedral on the mountains” is dedicated to the apostle princes Peter and Paul. The parish church is an example of Viennese engineering.
Open daily from 08:00 - 18:00.
Worship services: Sunday: 10.00 a.m. (in German)
The parish church is open during the day throughout the year
Prösels Castle was built in 1200 by the masters of Völs, the noble servers of the bishop of Brixen. In the early 16th century, the head of the provincial government, Leonhard von Völs, turned the castle into a Renaissance residence. The castle as it looks today is almost entirely the work of Leonhard von Völs. In the year 1981, the company KURATORIUM SCHLOSS PRÖSELS Ltd. purchased the castle.
Discover the Rittersaal, the Pfeilersaal, Kaminzimmer ,the Castle chapel and many other rooms in the Renaissance castle on a guided tour. Special programmes are available for school groups and families.
In summer, Prösels Castle hosts numerous concerts in the castle courtyard or on the castle lawn and, in case of bad weather, in the Knights' Hall.
GUIDED TOURS WINTER:
From January 09th to March 13th 2025 every Thursday at 3.00pm a guided castle tour takes place. After the guided tour a cup of "Apfelglühmix", a mulled local apple juice, will be served. Reservations within 12 pm of the respective date in the information offices or info@schloss-proesels.it
Fees:
GUIDED TOURS SUMMER (01.05.-31.10.2025):
German and Italian speaking visitors are taken by a guide, for all other visitors guided audio tours are offered in English.
Fees:
A chapel dedicated to Santa Cristina existed here probably at the end of the 12th century. A Romanesque church was mentioned in a papal document in 1342. The bell tower walls, up to the roof eaves, date back to that period. The church was extensively altered and enlarged: the choir is in the Gothic style, and a polygonal ossuary was added in the 16th century. The main altar (1690, Vinazer dynasty of sculptors) is worth a visit. The bronze statue of St. Philomena by Dominik Mahlknecht, once in the ossuary, is now in the main sqare of S. Cristina.
The chapel in honor of St. Sebastian was erected in remembrance of the Plague in Tires al Catinaccio. It stands isolated in an idyllic glade, the so-called "holy ground".
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 dedicated to the Holy Mother Maria (1244) stands in the center of the village with its tower covered with fine, red tiles.
The chapel was built by the local "Alpini" groups and it is dedicated to their patron saint, St.Maurice. It was inaugurated in Spring 2004. Open from mid of May till mid of October.
The 19th century neo-Gothic nave was demolished in 1988 and replaced by a modern octagonal structure. The beautiful chancel dating back to 1670, however, was preserved, complete with the painting of the Madonna with Child by Lukas Cranach on the high altar (now a copy). In 1503 Wilhelm von Wolkenstein had a chapel dedicated to the Virgin built here, which subsequently had to be enlarged several times to cope with the large numbers of people who came to this popular place of pilgrimage as they still do today. On the outside wall of the sacristy there is a stone painted with the coat of arms of the Counts of Wolkenstein.
You will soon find more information about the St. Catherine’s Chapel and the manor house Gurten here.
The St. Valentin church surrounded by meadows and fields, with the Schlern massif in the background, the small church of St. Valentin offers a real idyllic scene. The construction is of great historical and artistic value with precious frescos from the 14th and the 15th century. A peculiarity (among others): the painter has tried to include the local landscape as background in its representation of the three Kings.
With a height of 82 meters, the church steeple in Castelrotto is not only the highest in the vicinity, it's also – they say – the one with the most-beautiful-sounding bells. But the big tower bell has always been the greatest source of pride. They never fail to admiringly mention "Big Bell." The citizens of neighboring villages were so incensed by this that the young fellows in nearby Laion finally decided to teach the boastful natives of Castelrotto a lesson…
The chapel in the church tower is open daily from 08:00 - 18:00.
Chapel of St. Michael. The Chapel of St. Michael, also known as “cemetery chapel”, is situated next to the parish church of Völs and dates back to the Romanesque period. Today, the chapel houses an archaeological collection and the Völs Parish Museum .
On a small hill, in a sunny position, there is the settlement of Peterbühl. The hill, which tower is an important historical site. Here are the origins of Völs am Schlern and the entire region of the Schlern. People settled here many thousands of years before Christ. Today, the chapel of St. Peter am Bühl stands somewhat apart in the greenery. Above the door you can see the crossed keys of St. Peter, and next to them the coats of arms of the Thun and Firmian families: they are of Regina von Thun and Katharina von Firmian, the two wives of Leonhard the Elder of Völs. The altar from the 16th century is on display in the Völs Parish Museum. The decorative paintings are made in the year of 1600 in style of renaissance.
A beautiful place for a leisurely walk directly in Völs am Schlern. Several seating options provide a relaxed atmosphere and invite you to relax. A small children's playground can also be found along the circular path, as well as a statue. Sometimes there are some goats that come to the Peterbühl and provide a good company. In summer you can take a guided tour to see the Peterbühl church from the inside.
From the old church from 1332 only the lower part of the tower with its Roman round arch window still remain. The red tower with its imperial roof was built in 1739. The last redesign of the churchs interior during the second half of the 19th century gave the church its New-Roman touch. The artist Karl Hernrici painted an impressive ceiling fresco in 1772.
St Anne´s Chapel was built on a slab of rock south of the middle of Kastelruth. This High Baroque structure was consecrated in 1724 by Kaspar Ignaz von Künigl, Prince- Bishop of Brixen. The question of who served as master builder remains unresolved, but there are stylistic similarities to church buildings by the Delai family of master builders from bolzano.
The church is of Romanesque origin, and its dedication to the archangel also point to its antiquity. However, St. Michael´s Church is not mentioned in any document prior to an indulgence certificate from 1353. Parts of the masonry above the base of the church itself and in the tower are still from the Romanesque period. Gothic modifications were carried out after 1465. The nave was not provided with a vault until the 17th c.
As you walk through the woody valley between Seis and St. Konstantin, all of a sudden the church tower of the St. Vigil chapel towers up before you. This unusual location for a House of God, first documented in the year 1260, is not only a matter of intrigue, but also the origin of countless myths and legends. The chapel was built on an old pagan cult site, during the course of Christianisation. One particular curiosity: At the beginning of spring, on the 21st of March, the shadow of the Schlern falls directly on the chapel for the last time until the 23rd of September, when it heralds the return of autumn.
The small church is dedicated to the holy Vigilius. Worth seeing are the altar from the early 16th century, as well as the figures and grotesque masks decorating the modillions.
The St. Catherine church in Aica di Fiè was originally dedicated to St. Michael.
The frescoes on the exterior wall were made in 1420 and are worth a second glance. They show us the legend of the Christian princess Catherine of Alexandria.
In the year 1937 the construct of the building began, which should be consecrated to the holy cross. The finished place of worship was consecrated in 1950. The arrangement of the walls reminds of the strict forms of old basilicas. In 1962 the tower received five new bells. In the four large windows the mountain lecture, the sacrament of the baptism, the altar and the marriage and the Eucharistie are represented.
An unique group of holy buildings is standing on Mount Calvary, also called Kofel/Colle at Kastelruth/Castelrotto. From the village a path leads among porphyry rocks and beautiful nature. Several chapels line the pilgrimage, which ends at the Roman tower. The seven chapels show pictures of Jesus and his mother, the Mount of Olives, the scourging, crowning with thorns and the handwashing and the Entombment. (Nice walk - 20 minutes)
The paintings on the outer wall of the 17th century represent the wonderful rescue of the "Platzliner" meadow. God father flashes out the clouds, the Saints Cipriano and Giustina protect the meadow and his flook with their coats. This painting shows that the colonization of Tires did not begin in today's centre, but in San Cipriano.
The Franziskus Church. The modern church of Franziskus, designed in the shape of a dove, on the Seiser Alm invites visitors to contemplate and reflect. St. Francis of Assisi, who loved nature and God’s creation above everything, is the patron saint of the church. The plan of the church building shows the dove as a contour drawing. The body forms the sanctuary of the church and the wings the side additions. The towering bell tower represents the head in the upright projection. This rises smoothly out of the church sanctuary through a laminated timber construction. The interior of the church impresses with its brightly designed space and an interesting interplay of light and shadow. The slightly raised chancel faces east in accordance with ancient tradition. As it was very important to use simple, local building materials, larch wood and porphyry were used. The subtle fragrance of the wood is particularly pleasant. This conveys feelings of security and warmth to churchgoers.
The Parish Museum
The parish museum St. Michael was established in 1980 as the first of its kind in the Chapel of St. Michael which had been restored by the Provincial Monuments Office. It was created an exhibition space which was created in order to protect the works of art and to make them accessible to the public.
The exhibition comprises over 20 individual objects or groups of objects, including the winged altar of St. Peter am Bühel (year 1510), the altarpiece of St. Constantine (year 1519) and the former baroque high altarpiece from the parish church (Adoration of the Magi, Year 1742, a masterpiece of the painter Johann Jakob Delai from Bolzano). Furthermore the "Probst Nativity" which was created by the handicapped artist Augustin Alois Probst from Sterzing around 1805 - the so-called Kastengrippe. Worth seeing are the 42 miniature scenes with the entire history of salvation from the birth to the suffering the Passion and the Resurrection up to the Ascension of Christ, among others with more than 240 expressively carved wooden figures.
Archeology Museum:
In the crypt of the St. Michael's Chapel an archeological collection was built, which can be visited during a guided tour. There are findings from the different epochs - from the Neolithic period to the early modern times - are exhibited, such as the crescent-shaped bronze fibula from the 6th/5th century B.C. In addition, there is also a fragment of a Roman gravestone and so much more to discover.