The Loreto Chapel - 1250 years San Candido

Like the Holy Sepulchre, the Loreto Chapel goes back to the initiative of an innkeeper. It was built around 1650 by Johann Klettenhammer after a pilgrimage to Loreto near Ancona. While in 1870 his inn "Klettenheim" had to make way for the construction of the Val Pusteria railway, the chapel, although damaged several times by mudslides, was preserved.

Johann Klettenhammer had brought back a copy of the pietà from a pilgrimage to Loreto and built his chapel next to his inn in the style of the Chapel of Grace in the Basilica of Loreto. It was a popular way for affluent Christians to invest their capital.
In 1761 the chapel was so badly damaged by mudslides that it had to be moved to a higher location. The chapel was repeatedly damaged by mudflows, but it was never destroyed, which the local population considered to be a miracle. Because of this, the Loreto Chapel became the destination for many people seeking help, as the numerous votive tablets testify.