Maria Höfl

The Filialkirche Maria Höfl stands beside the road between Metnitz and Grades in the Metnitz valley of Carinthia. It has been a place of pilgrimage since the 14th century, drawing visitors to its quiet clearing in the hills. The church belongs to the parish of Metnitz and sits at the heart of a small settlement called Maria Höfl.

The building began as a Gothic structure in the 15th century and was enlarged in the 17th century. A wooden bell tower crowns the eastern roof, while shingle cladding covers the whole church. Inside, a 1986 restoration uncovered part of a 15th-century frieze on the choir. Frescoes painted between 1420 and 1430 cover the choir walls and vault, showing saints and a starry sky. Stained-glass windows from the same period depict rows of saints and a Madonna with Child.

The high altar, made around 1670, holds a modern Madonna copied from a stolen late-Gothic statue. Two side altars from about 1680 carry statues of bishops and scenes from the life of Christ. A late-17th-century pulpit now serves as a lectern, its painted panels showing two surviving Evangelists. A small late-Gothic crucifix hangs on the south wall, and a late-18th-century organ stands at the west end. The church’s furnishings and artworks span four centuries, offering glimpses of Gothic, Baroque and later styles in a single space.