Parish Church of Cortaccia

The oldest part of the Parish Church of Cortaccia (Kurtatsch), one of the Sights of this village on the Wine Road, is almost 1,000 years old: The baptismal font inside bears the Roman number MXXXIII (mille triginta tres, 1033 AD). This means that the St. Vigilius Church probably also originates from this time, even though it was not mentioned in written form until 1337. The buildings shows several styles: the Romanesque tower with the pointed pyramid (13th century), the sacristy with monstrance and chalice and the high altar from the late Gothic period as well as the Baroque altarpiece by Orazio Giovanelli (1635) showing the martyrdom of St. Vigilius.

In a side altar, however, there is the weeping oil painting of the Dolorous Mother of God, around which a legend grows. It was located in the "Hof an der Platten" farm since the 17th century. On November 28, 1733, a soldier of the emperor was a guest at the farm and noticed a drop on the face of the Virgin Mary while praying the rosary in the evening. This phenomenon was studied and could not be explained, although it is said that it happened several times. In 1738 the miracle was accepted, which made the Parish Church of Cortaccia one of the most important pilgrimage sites of South Tyrol. But since then, however, not a single teardrop has been seen again...