St. Jacob Church, Late Gothic parish church in Škofja Loka, Slovenia

St. Jacob Church is a late Gothic parish church with a hall nave of three aisles, divided by three pairs of octagonal stone columns into four bays. The star-ribbed vaults spring from the columns and wall pilasters, and the keystones carry saints, coats of arms and guild symbols. A narrower presbytery with a five-eighth closure and a five-storey bell tower stand at the east end.

A church on this site was first mentioned in 1271, when the parish centre was still at St George's in Stara Loka. The citizens demolished it in the 15th century; the new hall nave stood by 1471, dated by an inscription on the vault signed by a certain Tomaž. The presbytery and its southern chapel were added in 1525, the bell tower in 1532, and the Baroque period brought new choir stalls and altars.

The church is dedicated to the apostle James the Elder, whose statue stands in the centre of the presbytery, flanked by figures of Saints Peter, Matthew, John and Paul. The keystones of the nave vault carry saints, guild symbols, Christ and Mary, and two shields bear the master's marks of the workshop that built the hall nave.

The church stands in Škofja Loka's old town, with its five-storey Gothic bell tower attached to the north wall of the presbytery. The west facade was reshaped in Neo-Gothic style in the 19th century, while the east end keeps its original Gothic exterior with stepped buttresses. It is an active parish church, so visits fit around services.

The building combines architectural elements from multiple centuries in a single space, from Gothic structures to later-added black marble features. This layering of styles shows how the church was repeatedly reshaped and adapted over time.