Mater Dolorosa Chapel

The Gölkkapelle is a small chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, situated on the slopes of the 1,176-metre Gölkberg above the village of Krieglach in the Austrian province of Styria. It stands where a wooden cross once marked a gathering place for locals fleeing danger. The chapel’s name comes from the Slavic word for ‘bare mountain’, describing the bare slopes of the Gölkberg. The chapel was built in 1805–06 to thank God for the withdrawal of French troops under Napoleon. Its altar image was donated by Anna Gößner, grandmother of the builder’s wife. In 1882 Viktor Freiherr von Seßler-Herzinger turned it into a family burial chapel after his wife Helene died. The building was repeatedly damaged by earthquakes and floods, then restored and enlarged in the 19th century. Inside, the chapel has a cross-shaped floor plan with two apses and a marble staircase leading down to the Seßler-Herzinger family crypt. The neoromanesque altar, carved by Jakob Gschiel, shows a copper engraving of the Virgin in prayer. Eight painted glass windows by A. Neuhauser of Innsbruck let in coloured light. Votive pictures cover the walls, each one a silent record of thanks for healing or rescue.