St. Anne's Column, Victory column in Maria-Theresien-Straße, Austria
St. Anne's Column is a marble victory column standing 42 meters tall in the middle of Maria-Theresien-Straße in Innsbruck, topped by a gilded statue of the Virgin Mary. At its base, four saint figures face outward in different directions, giving the monument a presence that is visible from far along the street.
The column was built in 1703 to mark the withdrawal of Bavarian troops from Tyrol during the War of the Spanish Succession, and it was completed by sculptor Cristoforo Benedetti. It has stood at the center of the city's main street ever since, through many changes in the surrounding urban fabric.
The four figures at the base represent the patron saints of Tyrol, and locals still gather around the column as a natural meeting point on the main street. Visitors often stop to look at the saints closely, each one facing a different direction as if watching over the city.
The column stands in the middle of a pedestrian street in central Innsbruck, so it can be reached on foot without any difficulty from the old town or nearby areas. Visiting at different times of day is worth it, as the light changes how the red marble of the shaft appears.
The marble used for the column comes from the Kramsach quarry in Tyrol, a regional source known for its reddish tone that warms the stone's color in sunlight. The saint figures at the base have been replaced twice, in 1958 and again in 2009, while the originals are now kept inside the Altes Landhaus.
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