Watschiger Toleranzbethaus, Protestant church building in Hermagor-Pressegger See, Austria
The Watschiger Toleranzbethaus is a Protestant church in Hermagor-Pressegger See featuring an L-shaped design with two equally proportioned wings and a four-axis hall structure. Windows span across two floors, creating the building's distinctive character.
The Watschiger Toleranzbethaus was erected in 1783, making it the second stone-built tolerance house in Carinthia and the oldest one still standing. The worship house was added that same year as the southwestern wing of an L-shaped complex shared with the parish house. An organ was only commissioned in 1836, built by Alois Hörbiger for 740 Gulden. The Hermagor parish community still maintains the building.
The interior displays late Baroque and Rococo features, with a high altar showing Moses holding the law tablets above a crucifix. The furnishings reflect the Protestant tradition and this building's role in the local community.
The church stands in Watschig, in the municipality of Hermagor-Pressegger See. The main entrance is on the west side; a side entrance on the north side opens next to the adjoining parish house. The building is still used by the Hermagor parish, so visits depend on service times.
The organ was not part of the original furnishings: it was ordered from Alois Hörbiger in 1836 for 740 Gulden, more than fifty years after the prayer house was built. The flat ceiling above the altar carries a painted Last Supper, and the high altar shows Moses with the tablets of the law above the crucifix.
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