Innsbruck - St Jacob's Cathedral

Pfarrgasse, to the right of the Goldenes Dachl, leads north to the Domplatz, in which stands the Cathedral (Dom; formerly the town parish church of St James, raised to the status of cathedral in 1964), with an imposing twin-towered west front and a high dome over the choir. It was built in 1717- 24 to the design of the Baroque architect Johann Jakob Herkommer (d. 1717) and restored after suffering heavy damage in 1944 during the Second World War. The interior has ceiling paintings (Glorification of St James) and stucco work by the Asam brothers; High Baroque marble altars (1726-32), with a famous image of the Virgin ("Maria Hilf") by Lukas Cranach the Elder (c. 1530) on the high altar; and a richly carved pulpit (c. 1725). In the north aisle can be seen the imposing monument, designed by Hubert Gerhart, to Archduke Maximilian (d. 1618), Grand Master of the Teutonic Order.