Holy Cross Church ​|​ Dalaas

There used to be a chapel in this area with a crucifix that was said to have miraculous powers. Today, it is located at the high altar of the Church of the Holy Cross. The fact that this work of art was accorded such honor is thanks to the generous donation of a native of Dalaas who had spent his youth in the neighborhood at the Schwarzer Adler inn (now the Post). After studying in Vienna, he pursued a career in the service of the Habsburgs in Prague and was ennobled as Johann Christian Ritter von Strolz. His portrait is now located in the vestibule of the church he endowed.

In his will of 1748, he stipulated that the chapel standing next to his “family home” in Dalaas should be enlarged or converted into a church and that a benefice be established there. The small church was built in 1748, though it was not consecrated until 1756. The founder (who died in 1752) was very upset about the delays in establishing the benefice. His nephew, Josef Tscholl, then became the first holder of the Holy Cross benefice. Undoubtedly the most influential figure in this role was Josef von Schmuck, a descendant of the old Tyrolean landed gentry, who held the Holy Cross benefice from 1892 until his death in 1931. In 1902, he initiated the renovation of the little church and, at the same time, the construction of a second onion-domed tower, which continues to define its characteristic appearance to this day. The last beneficiary in Dalaas was Augustin Vonach, who is still well remembered by the older generation.

The church’s Baroque interior was commissioned in the 1750s by a relative of the founder, the district standard-bearer Johann Jakob Fritz. The figures on the three altars came from the workshop of the renowned sculptor Andreas Kölle in Fendels. Over the course of the 20th century, the sculptures on the side altars were brutally torn out and stolen, a fact that is still evident today. In addition to the crucifix on the high altar, the painting on the right side altar was also the object of special veneration. It was created by the Feldkirch painter Franz Anton Simon and depicts the 14 Holy Helpers.