Austria - Sankt Wolfgang, pilgrimage church

The foundation of the Sankt Wolfgang pilgrimage church goes back to a legend from 976. Bishop Wolfgang von Regensburg lived as a hermit on the Falkenstein and decided to build a first church. The location of the building was inspired by his famous "Axthrow", a divine dispensation. He threw an axe with the vow to build a church where he would find him again. When he found the axe after three days, he built the church at the site, a rocky hill next to the Wolfgangsee.

In 1183 the church was first mentioned in a document as Aberseekirche (Abersee was the original name of the Wolfgangsee), which was renamed Capella St. Wolfgangi in 1194. The existence of a stone church is mentioned in 1291.

Next to the church founded by Wolfgang von Regensburg, a Romanesque church was built, which met the requirements of the upcoming pilgrimages. That building was destroyed by fire in 1429. Abbot Simon Reuchling commissioned the construction of a new church, which was built as it still largely exists today.

The most famous piece in the interior of the church is the “Pacher altar” (PiP2). This winged altarpiece is the only fully preserved altar by Michael Pacher, an important medieval artist from Bruneck. In 1481 it was brought from South Tyrol to Sankt Wolfgang and set up in the presence of Pacher. The altar is one of the most important art monuments in Salzkammergut and Upper Austria and has gained a worldwide reputation through the pilgrimage.

Another highlight is the baroque double altar by T. Schwanthaler ( around 1675). Originally - so is said - this altar was to be erected instead of the “Pacher altar”, but Schwanthaler was so enthusiastic about that altar that he decided to erect his own at the present location. The fence around it indicates exactly the place where the first church, built by Bishop Wolfgang stood (main picture and PiP1).

The church in Sankt Wolfgang is nowadays still one of the most significant pilgrimage sites in Central Europe.