Memorial Europa Kapelle

A short distance from the rest area at the Europabrücke is the Europakapelle (Europe Chapel). It is dedicated to St. John Nepomuk, the patron saint of bridges, and St. Christopher, the patron saint of drivers, and was dedicated as a memorial to the workers who died in accidents during the construction of the motorway.

Built according to the plans of the Innsbruck architect Hubert Prachensky, it received its impressive artistic design through a fresco cycle by the South Tyrolean painter Karl Plattner.

The altar wall is made of stained glass windows and thus constantly receives new, never repetitive, motif compositions.

Even before the first sod was turned for the motorway, the chapel hill was a prominent elevation within the densely forested Schönberg ridge that separates the Sill valley from the Ruetztal valley.

The various routes of the Roman road, the medieval imperial road and the later Maria Theresa road led along its narrow ridge. They are still recognisable in the terrain in some places.

Europabrücke:
It is the most powerful pier bridge in the world: 800 m long, 180 m high, the largest pier with a shaft of 137 m and a 47 m deep foundation stands on Schönberg municipal territory.
A particularly beautiful vantage point has been created on the remaining part of the Burgstall ridge, crowned by the Eruopa Chapel. ist.