Description of the attraction
The Church of John of Nepomuk is located in the village of Obergurgl, located in the municipality of the popular Tyrolean resort of Sölden. The distance to the center of this town is just under a kilometer.
The Church of John of Nepomuk is a kind of record holder - it is the highest church parish in the whole of Austria - it is located at an altitude of 1927 meters above sea level. At the same time, even before 1315, a small peasant house with a courtyard and a barn was located on this ledge, and then, apparently, a small chapel grew here, which was later rebuilt into a Baroque church. The modern building of the Church of St. John of Nepomuk was erected already in 1737, and in 1891 the village of Obergurgl received the status of a full-fledged parish, the center of which was located just in this church.
Due to the increase in the number of parishioners in the 20th century, the church was rebuilt and enlarged several times: in 1924 an additional chapel was added, and in 1966 large-scale work was carried out to expand the church. Interestingly, both restoration processes took place under the leadership of the great Austrian architect Clemens Holzmeister, who was already 80 years old at the time of the later work.
The building itself is a rather low white structure with a sloping roof and small windows. The main facade ends with a triangular roof. The ensemble is complemented by a low bell tower topped with a pointed spire painted red.
The interior of the church was completed already in the 20th century - the painting of the walls and ceiling dates back to 1930. However, the old bell, cast in 1726, has survived - it probably belonged to the previous small chapel. A cross from 1755 was also installed in the courtyard of the church.
