Saint Rupert Church

The Filialkirche Staudachhof stands in the Metnitz valley, part of Friesach municipality in Carinthia. A small, flat-roofed late Romanesque church, it was first recorded in 1464 and is dedicated to Saint Rupert of Salzburg. The building features a ribbed five-eighths apse, a stone polygonal porch, a wooden bell turret and a chamfered Gothic pointed arch doorway. Romanesque windows on the south wall have been bricked up. Inside, the late 17th-century high altar is an aedicule on a plinth, framed by ornamental side panels and topped with a broken segmental pediment. Akanthus scrolls decorate the plinth, entablature and side ears, while angels occupy the segments. The central statue shows Saint Rupert between Saints Benedict and Sebastian, with the Archangel Michael above. Around 1680, the left side altar was made, holding a statue of Saint Oswald; its former crowning group, a Coronation of the Virgin, now belongs to Klagenfurt’s diocesan museum. The matching right side altar carries a figure of Saint Sebastian. A carved Annunciation group and console figures of Saints Peter and Paul are also present. The pulpit, dating from about 1680, stands on the floor. The church’s interior blends late Romanesque structure with rich Baroque decoration, creating a quiet place for reflection.