Architect
c. 1629, Roveredo, Graubunden (Swiss Confederation) - c. 1700
The architect who designed the Kajetanerkirche (1685-1697) in the Altstadt, a baroque church for the Theatine Order built on the site of a medieval bathhouse where Paracelsus had once practised. Giovanni Gaspare Zuccalli came from the extraordinary Graubunden tradition that produced a disproportionate number of master builders for Central European courts.
His story has a bitter coda. When Johann Ernst von Thun succeeded Max Gandolph as archbishop, Thun was hostile to the “Welsch Baroque” style and to the Theatines themselves. Zuccalli spent years fighting for his final payment. The episode marks the end of Italian-Swiss architectural dominance in Salzburg. After Zuccalli, Thun turned entirely to Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, and the city’s baroque identity shifted from Italian to Austrian hands.
On the map
The 2 places on this page, where they actually stand.
Locations
Built 1685-1697
A Baroque church on Kajetanerplatz in the Nonntal district, built 1685-1697 for the Theatine Order by Giovanni Gaspare Zuccalli. The last Italian-designed church in Salzburg, closing one architectural era and opening the door to Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach.
Built 1685-1689
A small Baroque church below Nonnberg Abbey in Nonntal, built 1685-1689 by Giovanni Gaspare Zuccalli. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed several works specifically for this church. Along with the Cajetan Church, one of the last two Italian-built Baroque churches in Salzburg.
