St. Ulrich at Ulrichshof in Thaur

The municipality of Thaur is located not far east of the state capital Innsbruck at the foot of the Nordkette and on the old road from Innsbruck to Hall. The area was definitely settled by 1000 BC, as a Bronze Age urn cemetery proves. The name "Taurane" is first mentioned in a deed of donation in the year 827. Thaur was then, as was the neighboring Absam, in the possession of the Prince-Bishopric of Absam and a pure farming village. In the High Middle Ages, salt mining became important and brought prosperity.

Absam had its own church, but soon a church was also built in Thaur, a branch church of Absam, which was dedicated to Saint Ulrich, the canonized bishop of Augsburg. This church is part of a building complex that also includes a massive tower and a residence. This Ulrich's or Afra's court is now located in the middle of the village. It received its current shape during a major reconstruction in the 16th century.

Originally, the three buildings were separate. According to archaeological research, the oldest parts of the complex are the eastern part of the church with the round apse, which dates from the late 8th century. This small Romanesque church had a floor plan of about 6 by 9 meters. In the High Middle Ages, the church was extended to the west and connected to the tower. The residential building was also attached to the tower. It is possible that the Ulrich's court was inhabited and managed by monks, and its representative character also suggests a priory or a manor house of the Prince-Bishopric of Augsburg. This would correspond to the significance that Thaur had attained at that time through salt mining.

The Ulrich's court is also referred to as the Afra's court – after Saint Afra, the patron saint of the city of Augsburg. Perhaps the church was initially even dedicated to Saint Afra, because Ulrich of Augsburg did not die until 973 and was canonized 20 years later, long after the church had been built.

In the interior of St. Ulrich, there are numerous wall paintings and frescoes from the Romanesque and Gothic periods. The ornaments with mythical animals and grimaces in the window jambs are Romanesque, other frescoes date from the 15th century. The latter are associated with the painter Jobst Weninger, who around 1470 was the court painter of the Tyrolean sovereign Archduke Sigismund the Rich in Coin, among others. The beamed ceiling from the 13th century and a winged altar from the Renaissance are also very beautiful, giving the sacred space a particularly impressive atmosphere.