The Reconstruction of the Pilgrimage Complex in Mariazell

Architects: Feyferlik/Fritzer
Text: Zorán Vukoszávlyev
Photos: Paul Ott

Mariazell has been a frequented site of pilgrimage since the 16th century. Its main altarpiece is featured by a dynamic composition consecrated in 1704 designed by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach. The continuous renovations carried out in the past 25 years were accompanied by a team of architects, guided by the abbot of the community commissioning the project. The external renovation of the basilica is a task of monument protection in the classic sense of the word, the comprehensive renovation of the Baroque and Gothic interior was a work of restorer assisted by the most recent research and diagnostics into which the newly created liturgical spatial forms had to be integrated. The liturgical aisle and the new lateral organ are characteristic features of the altar space. The new sacristy has also been built as well as the spaces so far unused have been integrated into the visitor’s routes. Contemporary elements are phrased in the high-standard late-Baroque church space, and the tower interiors with ancillary functions are also phrased in the contemporary vocabulary. However, it is not distinction, but the ambition to a harmonious follow up is the driving force behind it all.

Architects: Wolfgang Feyferlik, Susanne Fritzer
Project manager: Anton Nolz
Structure: Markus Zechner
Coordinating restorator: Erika Thümmel