Saint Nicholas Church: Merano’s Late Gothic Parish Church in Italy
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.5
- Popularity
- Low
- Country
- Italy
- Primary era
- Medieval
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval, Early Modern, Modern
- Civilizations
- Habsburg, Holy Roman Empire
- Site type
- Religious
- Remains
- Church
On this page19 sections
History
Saint Nicholas Church is the Roman Catholic parish church of Merano in Italy, standing in the town’s historic center between Domplatz and Pfarrplatz at the end of Laubengasse. Dedicated to Saint Nicholas of Myra, the traditional protector of children, sailors, merchants, and the generous, it developed into an important example of Tyrolean Gothic architecture.
Medieval origins and expansion
A church at Merano is traditionally linked with the town’s foundation around 1170, although the earliest surviving documentary references date from the thirteenth century. The medieval building was dedicated to Saint Nicholas and Saint Peter Martyr, a Dominican preacher and inquisitor who was canonized soon after his death. It belonged to the older parish of Tyrol and functioned as a curacy church, meaning that it was served locally while remaining subordinate to another parish.
The church’s position on the right bank of the Passer affected its ecclesiastical affiliation. Before its later incorporation into the Diocese of Bolzano-Bressanone, it belonged to the Diocese of Chur rather than the Archdiocese of Trent. As Merano grew as a political and commercial center, the earlier church became the subject of a prolonged rebuilding campaign. Bishop Siegfried of Chur promoted the expansion in 1302, with additional support from Merano’s citizens.
The works continued for more than a century. The new choir was consecrated in 1367, while the completed church was consecrated on 10 November 1465. The fourteenth-century choir and nave were begun by stoneworkers associated with the Rottweil building workshop. After an interruption, Stefan Tobler of Burghausen vaulted the nave around 1450–1460. These stages gave the church the predominantly late Gothic form that defines it today.
Parish church and later alterations
Although a parish vicar had served Merano since the fourteenth century, Saint Nicholas remained subordinate to the parish church of Tyrol until the early modern period. Merano became an independent parish in 1657, and Saint Nicholas then became the town’s parish church.
Further changes followed in the seventeenth century. A gallery was constructed above the main entrance in 1670–1671 by Giacomo and Francesco Delai, and the organ was transferred there from the choir. The church also acquired later furnishings and alterations before nineteenth-century restoration brought renewed attention to its medieval appearance.
Restoration and continuing importance
Friedrich von Schmidt, the Viennese cathedral architect, directed a major restoration between 1882 and 1898. An important campaign in 1887 aimed to recover the Gothic character of the building by removing Baroque alterations. The church was renovated again in 1957 in consultation with the monument authorities, followed by a thorough restoration from 1993 to 2000. It has been legally protected as a monument since 1980.
The cemetery around the church was transferred in 1848 to the area behind the Church of the Holy Spirit, now occupied by Marconi Gardens. About 80 tombstones remain associated with Saint Nicholas, including memorials to members of the Pendl and Wasmann artist families. The adjacent Saint Barbara Chapel stands immediately to the east, while Saint Nicholas continues to be regarded as one of Merano’s landmarks.
Remains
Saint Nicholas is a late Gothic hall church, a form in which the side aisles are approximately equal in height to the central nave. The three-aisled interior measures about 52 metres in length and 32 metres in width. Ten massive round columns carry a ribbed net vault, whose intersecting ribs form a geometric network. At the east end, the nave leads to a slightly inclined polygonal choir through a lightly emphasized triumphal arch.
Exterior and tower
West facade
The west facade faces the square. Its deeply recessed portal has a pointed arch and is surmounted by a large rose window, a circular window with radiating stone tracery. The triangular gable is finished with small tower-like crenellations and rows of niches. To the right of the portal is a richly figured mural of Christ Carrying the Cross, associated with Conrad Waider and dating from around 1500–1518. Alfons Siber restored or repainted it in 1896.
South facade and portals
The large western south portal, probably dating from 1430–1440, is the principal entrance even though it is located on the side of the church. Its keel-shaped arch is framed by carved crockets and open trefoils. Figures on the consoles represent Saints James, Andrew, Paul, and Bartholomew, the Virgin and Child, and Christ as the Gardener. A former missionary cross by Johann Baptist Pendl is now attached to the sacristy.
The south facade also bears a mural of the Raising of Lazarus, created as the tomb painting of Christoph Hafner, who died in 1699. A statue of Saint Nicholas stands nearby in a niche beneath a steep gable. Above the eastern south portal is a mural of Saint Christopher roughly 10 metres high, repainted by Alfons Siber in 1896. An adjoining painting shows Saint Sebastian with the kneeling prelate Sebastian Glatz, who died in 1909.
Tomb monuments and memorials on the facade commemorate Erasmus Scharsacher, Hanns Ueblher, Benigna and Everosina von Wolkenstein, and the Schneeburg-Stachelburg family. A death lantern dates from around 1530, while the bronze epitaph for Benigna and Everosina von Wolkenstein was made by Alexander Colin in 1586.
Choir tower
A tall tower is attached to the south side of the choir and rises approximately 80 metres. Its lower sections were begun in the fourteenth century, and its third storey, with Gothic windows, was complete by the church’s consecration. The square clock section was added in 1545. An octagonal Italian-style cupola, or tower cap, was completed around 1617–1618, probably under the direction of Francesco Lucchese, with Giovanni Bosacchi associated with its construction.
Tower passage
The passage beneath the tower has a cross vault dating from about 1360–1370. It rests on consoles carved with foliage and a female bust. Its murals include a forest scene in which two men kneel before a Trinitarian cross, the emblem of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity, which was founded to assist in the redemption of Christian captives. The figures probably represent Saints John of Matha and Felix of Valois.
Other paintings in the passage include a Pietà dated 1414 and a Crucifixion dated 1460. Both were renewed in the eighteenth century. Faded scenes of Saints Barbara, Florian, Leonard, Christopher, and Catherine, together with another Pietà, also survive in this part of the building.
Choir and principal furnishings
Polygonal choir
The choir is about 7 metres long and has ten straight sides. Its buttresses alternate with pointed windows fitted with colored glazing, giving the east end its characteristic vertical rhythm. The choir is regarded as an outstanding creation of Tyrolean High Gothic architecture. Fourteen statues stand on consoles between the windows. Designed by Emanuel Pendl and carved by his father, Franz Xaver Pendl, they represent Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the twelve Apostles.
The choir windows installed in 1888–1889 were donated by Merano citizens. Their scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary include the Coronation of Mary in the central window. White marble tombstones for Paul Weggler, Hanns Memminger, Thomas Zöttl, and Hans Pritschwitz are embedded in the choir wall.
High altar and former choir works
The high altar was made by Jakob Pirchstaller in 1786–1788. It consists of a freestanding mensa, or altar table, of Ratschings marble, accompanied by two wooden angels in adoration. Martin Knoller’s painting of the Assumption of Mary, measuring approximately 6.5 by 3.5 metres, stood on the high altar from 1788 until 1887. Statues of Saints Roch, Sebastian, Vigilius, and Nicholas formerly associated with the altar are now beside the organ and on the gallery balustrade.
Earlier choir furnishings included a carved altar by Hans Schnatterpeck and paintings by Johann Panneels and Matthias Pussjäger. Other associated works include Christ in the Temple by Matthias Pussjäger, an eighteenth-century Mater Dolorosa, a Trinity with the Virgin Mary and Saints Sebastian, Fabian, and Roch by Christoph Helfenrieder, dating from around 1632–1635, and an Annunciation by Ulrich Glantschnigg dating from around 1700.
Triumphal arch and devotional works
Two wooden statues stand before the steps descending from the choir into the nave. One represents Saint Nicholas and dates from around 1500; the other represents Saint Sebastian and dates from the seventeenth century. A surviving statue of Saint Nicholas from a winged altar of about 1450 stands near the triumphal arch.
A wooden triumphal cross by Blasius Mayrhofer hangs above the arch. The two altars on the arch walls were designed by Jakob Pirchstaller in a Classicist style and carry paintings by Martin Knoller depicting the Last Supper and the Nativity. Friedrich von Schmidt designed the confessionals, which were executed by Josef Wassler. Above the first confessional hangs Friedrich Wasmann’s painting of the Visitation. A sandstone communion rail made in 1898 was removed during the restoration of the 1990s.
Nave and side altars
North aisle
The north side of the nave contains the Cross Altar, whose Crucifixion was carved by Hans Patsch around 1640. It is accompanied by a Dolorosa, while a nineteenth-century figure of Saint John was made by Sebastian Stainer. Nearby stands a twelve-sided, cup-shaped baptismal font of gray-white Töller marble dating from around 1500. The relief figures on its wooden lid are later works by Josef Wassler.
Winged altars
A late Gothic winged altar from the former Johanniter church at Tarsch entered Saint Nicholas through the antiques trade around 1888 and was restored by Josef Wassler in 1890–1891. Attributed to the workshop of Hans Schnatterpeck, it has a shrine containing the Virgin and Child, a deacon who may represent Saint Stephen, and Saint Bartholomew. Its inner wings bear reliefs of Saints George and Maurice, while the outer wings show Saint John the Evangelist and Saint Sebastian. The predella, the lower section beneath an altarpiece, contains a carved Pietà with Saint John and Mary Magdalene, flanked by Saints Ottilia and Apollonia.
A Neo-Gothic winged altar on the south side was made in 1892 by Dominikus Trenkwalder after a design by Anton Weber. Its scenes represent Saint Joseph with the standing Christ Child, the Marriage of the Virgin, the Flight into Egypt, the twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple and in Joseph’s workshop, and the Death of Saint Joseph.
Gallery, images, and bells
Near the main entrance hangs a copy of Lucas Cranach’s Maria Hilf image. Merano’s population donated it in 1801 in gratitude for the region’s liberation from French forces after the Peace of Lunéville. The pulpit, made of red sandstone with open tracery, dates from around 1500 and rests on a central pillar.
The organ gallery contains oil paintings probably by Matthias Pussjäger. They depict episodes from the life of Saint Nicholas, with a larger central scene showing the Adoration of the Magi. The present organ was built by Georg Hradetzky of Krems in 1973 and later enlarged by Gerhard Hradetzky to 40 stops.
The tower contains seven bells tuned to B, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Two further bells hang in the tower cap. They were cast in 1508 and 1667, and the later bell formerly served as a death bell.
Cemetery memorials
The surviving cemetery memorials include a stone for Anna von Paravicini, born von Zinnenberg. Her unusual family history was described by Christoph Wilhelm Hufeland in his 1796 work Makrobiotik. Together with the tombstones and memorials connected with the Pendl and Wasmann families, these stones preserve part of the funerary history formerly associated with the churchyard.
