St. Martin's Church is located in the heart of the spa town of
Bad Goisern, just two hundred meters from the city park. This
Catholic church was heavily rebuilt in the 18th century, but part of
the building has survived from the end of the 15th century. The
first documentary mention of the Church of St. Martin dates back to
1320, but traces of early medieval buildings have not survived. In
1495, the completely burnt church was rebuilt in the late Gothic
style. In 1730, after another fire, the temple had to be almost
completely rebuilt, and a hundred years later, in 1835-1837, the
building was greatly increased in size, while the choirs were moved
to another part of the church.
Despite the fact that
Protestantism was widespread in this town, the Catholic parish of
St. Martin was also very popular and attracted more and more
believers. Therefore, in the middle of the 19th century, it was
decided to add new premises to the church. From the late Gothic
style, only the graceful vaulted ceilings inside the temple
remained, especially in the former choir stalls. The northern
portal, completed in 1530, has also been preserved in its original
form. It features artsy columns and pointed arcades. The bell tower
with a hipped roof was added already in 1863.
The first documentary mention can be found in a document from the
year 1320, when the then auxiliary bishop of Passau undertook the
reconciliation of the already existing Martinskirche. The consecration
of the late Gothic church, which is still essentially preserved, was
done by the Passau suffragan bishop Friedrich Andreas. The restoration
after the fire of 1495 took place in the same year. In 1534 and 1730 the
church had to be restored again after fires.
Although Bad Goisern
is one of the first tolerance communities to be predominantly Protestant
and therefore has had a Protestant parish church since 1782, the
proportion of Catholics in the population has steadily increased. For
this reason, an extension of the Martinskirche was necessary, the
construction work took place in the years 1835 to 1837. The main axis
was turned at right angles and the chancel of the old church was
rededicated as a side chapel (Marienkapelle).
The newer stock of the Martinskirche is designed as a cruciform hall
church with a barrel vault. The one-bay choir with ribbed vaulting and a
3/8 closure, which today forms the eastern choir arm, and the pointed
arch portal in the north from 1530 with rich profiling have remained
unchanged from the original Gothic building.
The west tower from
1863 has a tent roof.
Late Gothic wall paintings in the nave from the second half of the
15th century in the southeast corner show Christ in the mandorla, the
twelve apostles and the Last Judgment, on the south wall the Root of
Jesse and a donor figure with the coat of arms of the Framynnger family
with the designation 1517. In the north-east corner, frescoes from
around 1470 to 1480 by the Master von Schöder, some of which have been
preserved in fragmentary form, show: Christ on the Mount of Olives, the
flagellation and crowning with thorns, the carrying of the cross, the
crucifixion, Christ takes Adam and Eve out of limbo into the
transfiguration, the resurrection and ascension. Late Gothic frescoes in
the choir show the Manna blessing, the protective cloak Madonna, Saints
Sebastian, Peter and Paul, representations from the life of St. Nicholas
and in the vaulted areas angels with the instruments of the Passion.
The restoration of the frescoes was initiated by the Rotary Club Bad
Gastein on the occasion of the 600th anniversary celebrations in 1989
and was largely financed as a long-term project. One third of the total
sum of ATS 3 million was raised by the Rotary Club Bad Gastein.
In 2022 the church was re-roofed with larch shingles.