Pfarrkirche St. Veit in Defereggen

The Catholic parish church of St Vitus stands high above the valley floor in the village of St Vitus in Defereggen, a municipality in the Lienz district of East Tyrol. The church is dedicated to Saint Vitus and belongs to the Matrei deanery in the Diocese of Innsbruck. It has been listed as a protected monument since the 19th century. The church’s origins go back to 1313, when a chaplain was first recorded. The Gothic choir dates from around 1400, while the plain nave was built in 1730 by builders Nikolaus Stramer and Gottfried Ortner. Inside, the oldest part is the vaulted crypt chapel from the 14th century. The nave is a wide hall with a low barrel vault resting on a modest cornice. The double gallery rests on columns, and the pointed triumphal arch leads to the lower three-bay choir with its painted ribbed vault from 1947. The church is surrounded by a walled cemetery. The Gothic choir walls hold 15th-century frescoes of the Annunciation and the Nativity, with twelve apostles painted below around 1400. The tower, built in the 14th century, has coupled pointed windows and an octagonal spire dated 1730. The high altar, made in 1812–20, features images of Saints Vitus, Modestus and Crescentia, while the organ dates from 1908. A bronze plaque beside the west porch commemorates Sebastian Rieger, known as Reimmichl.