Katholische Kirche in Weißbriach

The Catholic parish church of St John the Baptist stands at the western edge of Weißbriach village in the Gitschtal valley, Hermagor district, Carinthia. It belongs to the Hermagor-Smohor deanery of the Gurk-Klagenfurt diocese and is listed as a protected monument. The present building is late-Gothic, first recorded in 1331, though its tower and sacristy were added later. The church is notable for its carefully restored 16th-century architectural polychromy uncovered in 1992. Inside, a three-bay nave with star-ribbed vaults and chamfered wall shafts leads to a slightly lower, three-eighths-ended choir under matching vaulting. The oldest bell, dating from the 13th century, was recently conserved. Paintings from the early 17th century depict the Baptism of Christ, the Crucifixion with donor figures, and the Feast of Herod. Visitors enter through a renewed west portal under a small porch. Inside, the north and south choir lunettes hold frescoes of the Resurrection and the Marriage of Herodias. A round-arched chancel arch separates the nave from the choir, where a sacrament house with its original grille is set beside the pointed sacristy doorway. The Baroque pulpit and organ loft, both late 17th century, overlook the space, while the plain Taufstein and a dated prie-dieu add to the interior’s quiet character.