Old Cathedral, Linz, Baroque cathedral in Linz, Austria.
The Old Cathedral, also called the Church of Ignatius, is a Baroque church in Linz with a pale green and white facade, two symmetrical towers topped by dark multi-tiered domed roofs with clocks and crosses, and a steep red-tiled roof behind. Its single wide nave is flanked by three side chapels on either side, and the interior is bright with pink marble columns. Above the entrance gate are the coats of arms of the Starhemberg, Weissenwolf and Kuefstein families.
Construction of this Jesuit church took place between 1669 and 1683 under architect Pietro Francesco Carlone. It served as Linz's cathedral from 1785 to 1909, when the cathedral function moved to a new building.
The church is also called Ignatiuskirche or Jesuitenkirche, after Saint Ignatius of Loyola and the Jesuit order. Since autumn 2023 it has served the Ukrainian Greek Catholic community of Linz for services in the Byzantine rite, and the Bruckner Festival is held here annually in honour of the composer.
The church is a rectory church of the Diocese of Linz and since autumn 2023 also serves Linz's Ukrainian Greek Catholic community, which celebrates services in the Byzantine rite. Visitors should therefore expect the interior to be in use during those liturgies and time their look around the nave and side chapels accordingly.
The organ was built by Franz Xaver Chrismann between 1768 and 1770 for the monastery church of Engelszell, then brought to Linz after the monastery was dissolved. Anton Bruckner, organist here from 1856 to 1868, had it reworked by Josef Breinbauer until 1867, and Rieger replaced all reed stops in 1979/80 while leaving the rest largely untouched. A plaque on the facade commemorates Bruckner.
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