Maria im Schatten Pilgrimage Church in Lauffen

Cultural and Mythical Place

Pilgrimage church with a 1.26m-high, Gothic statue of the Virgin Mary, where many miracles are said to have occurred. The church was first chartered around 1344. Already in 1275 Lauffen was made a market town. Thanks to the place’s location at Wilder Laufen, the rapids of Traun River, it became an important spot for trading salt and later on iron already in the Middle Ages. The two boundary stones that are today referred to as Pest columns date back to this time. Skippers on Traun River called them “Gottsnam” stones and asked for god’s protection for their dangerous ride through the rapids there.