Churches and monasteries - Hall
St. Nikolaus Parish Church - Hall
Hall Parish Church dates from before 1281 and is dedicated to St Nikolaus, the patron saint of miners and mariners.
After Hall received its town charter in 1303, at least a larger choir was added to the single-nave, Gothic-style church. A tower was built in 1345, but the upper section crashed to the ground in the earthquake of 1670. It was then replaced by a Baroque onion dome. Although a new nave was built in 1352, after a few decades the church proved to be too small again. It was enlarged again in 1420, but this turned out to be a difficult undertaking.
As the church stands at the edge of a terrace, the southern nave wall had to be built on the site of the old one, so that enlargement of the interior was only possible on the west and north side.
During the 18th century, the interior of the church was "Baroquised". The ceiling frescoes are the work of the Viennese court painter, Adam Mölk. The high altar dates from 1657 and was created by a pupil of Rubens, Erasmus Quellinus.
The Waldauf chapel is in the northern side aisle. In 1501 the famous knight Florian Waldauf zu Waldenstein (d. 1501), a close confidant of Emperor Maximilian I, who had risen up from the ranks of the Tyrolean peasant farming community, bequeathed his "Sacred Treasure" of over 100 lavishly-displayed relics to the church. Modest remains of which are still to be seen in the several wall cabinets. The Madonna statue at the heart of the chapel originates from the Michael Pacher school.
The St Magdalena Chapel is situated next to the parish church. The chapel, which is at its core Romanesque, and converted in 1330 into a double-storey chapel, was formerly the town's cemetery chapel. In the lower floor there is a shop, while the upper chapel accessible from the church square, has since 1923 been a chapel dedicated to those who died in war. The frescoes in the two barrel vaults on the east wall show, in the north panel, the enthroned Madonna flanked by four saints, while to the south is the Adoration of the Three Kings; the paintings are in the newly-emerging "Weiche Stil" (Soft Style) and date from around 1400. The large Last Judgement fresco in the south wall's west panel was added a good 50 years later. Particularly impressive is the lower section of the picture with the Resurrection of the Dead from their Graves and the Abyss of Hell. The fully preserved winged altar dates from 1490. It was originally built for the former monastery church of St Magdalena im Halltal. The opened shrine shows the carved figures of the Virgin Mary between St Margaretha and St Katherina, while on the raised altar is a sculptured rendering of the Birth of Christ. In the inside the altar pictures show scenes from the life of Mary, on the outside St Heinrich and St Sebastian.
After Hall received its town charter in 1303, at least a larger choir was added to the single-nave, Gothic-style church. A tower was built in 1345, but the upper section crashed to the ground in the earthquake of 1670. It was then replaced by a Baroque onion dome. Although a new nave was built in 1352, after a few decades the church proved to be too small again. It was enlarged again in 1420, but this turned out to be a difficult undertaking.
As the church stands at the edge of a terrace, the southern nave wall had to be built on the site of the old one, so that enlargement of the interior was only possible on the west and north side.
During the 18th century, the interior of the church was "Baroquised". The ceiling frescoes are the work of the Viennese court painter, Adam Mölk. The high altar dates from 1657 and was created by a pupil of Rubens, Erasmus Quellinus.
The Waldauf chapel is in the northern side aisle. In 1501 the famous knight Florian Waldauf zu Waldenstein (d. 1501), a close confidant of Emperor Maximilian I, who had risen up from the ranks of the Tyrolean peasant farming community, bequeathed his "Sacred Treasure" of over 100 lavishly-displayed relics to the church. Modest remains of which are still to be seen in the several wall cabinets. The Madonna statue at the heart of the chapel originates from the Michael Pacher school.
The St Magdalena Chapel is situated next to the parish church. The chapel, which is at its core Romanesque, and converted in 1330 into a double-storey chapel, was formerly the town's cemetery chapel. In the lower floor there is a shop, while the upper chapel accessible from the church square, has since 1923 been a chapel dedicated to those who died in war. The frescoes in the two barrel vaults on the east wall show, in the north panel, the enthroned Madonna flanked by four saints, while to the south is the Adoration of the Three Kings; the paintings are in the newly-emerging "Weiche Stil" (Soft Style) and date from around 1400. The large Last Judgement fresco in the south wall's west panel was added a good 50 years later. Particularly impressive is the lower section of the picture with the Resurrection of the Dead from their Graves and the Abyss of Hell. The fully preserved winged altar dates from 1490. It was originally built for the former monastery church of St Magdalena im Halltal. The opened shrine shows the carved figures of the Virgin Mary between St Margaretha and St Katherina, while on the raised altar is a sculptured rendering of the Birth of Christ. In the inside the altar pictures show scenes from the life of Mary, on the outside St Heinrich and St Sebastian.
St. Magdalena Chapel - Hall
The double chapel was first mentioned in records in 1330.
The lower late-Gothic storey houses shops, while the upper fresco-adorned section is now a chapel dedicated to those who died in war. Of particular interest are the late-Gothic winged altar (2nd half of the 15th century) and the frescoes from three separate eras (1410-1610).
The St Magdalena Chapel may be visited.
The lower late-Gothic storey houses shops, while the upper fresco-adorned section is now a chapel dedicated to those who died in war. Of particular interest are the late-Gothic winged altar (2nd half of the 15th century) and the frescoes from three separate eras (1410-1610).
The St Magdalena Chapel may be visited.
The Herz-Jesu or Sacred Heart Convent - Hall
Two years after the mint was moved from Burg Sparberegg to Burg Hasegg, Archduchess Magdalena, the sister of Archduke Ferdinand II, moved with her sisters and other noblewomen into the newly-founded convent. The complex, built by Giovanni Luchese, was adorned in 1611 and again in 1691 with substantial, impressive stucco. In 1783 the monastery was dissolved and a majority of the art treasures destroyed. The former convent was re-opened in 1912 and is now a sanctuary for the Sisters of the Sacred Heart.
Jesuit Church - Hall
A Jesuit college was founded in 1571 to minister to the spiritual needs of the convent. The Order also ran a grammar school from 1573. The monastery was completely renovated between 1671 and 1684. The two churches on the Stiftsplatz are the only sacred buildings dating from the Tyrol's courtly late-Renaissance era. The church, consecrated in 1610 (stucco from 1653), was "Baroquised" in the second half of the 17th century. The monastery was dissolved in 1773. Nowadays, the regional courts of justice forms part of the spacious complex, which boasts one of the Tyrol's finest Baroque inner courtyards.
The Jesuit Church may be visited.
The Jesuit Church may be visited.
