St. Martin's Church, Austria

 

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.

 

History

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).

 

Church building

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.

 

Interior

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.