Pfarrkirche hl. Katharina, Stanz im Mürztal

The Catholic parish church of St Catherine stands on a hill above the village of Stanz in the Mürztal valley in Styria. It belongs to the Upper Styria East region in the diocese of Graz-Seckau and is protected as a listed building. The present church was built between 1720 and 1730 to designs by the master builder Remigius Horner. A square west tower with early-Baroque windows rises above the main entrance. Inside, three bays of barrel vaulting on pilasters lead to a spacious apse framed by three conches. The high altar of 1741 shows the saint painted by Johann Veit Hauck the year before. The pulpit was carved by Philipp Primsch in 1755, and a bell cast by Martin Feltl in 1781 hangs in the tower. Four small Baroque chapels stand around the church, their faded murals depicting the Four Evangelists. The churchyard offers wide views over the valley and the surrounding hills.