Steinkirchen offers two distinct starting points for planning a trip: the architectural history of its churches and a shared walking and cycling path towards Taufkirchen. Its ecclesiastical heritage ranges from the parish church in the village to other churches in the municipality. If you are looking for a holiday apartment, you can first weigh up whether church architecture or the path should feature more prominently in your planned stay.
Church Architecture in Steinkirchen
The Catholic parish church of St. Laurentius is a brick shell building on high ground dating from the late 15th century; its present building dates from the Late Gothic period around 1470. The unplastered brick building reflects the influence of Landshut. In the floor plan, the four-bay nave is followed by a two-bay, slightly recessed choir and its termination with three sides of an octagon. A bay is a distinct section of a building; the nave has four, and the choir has two. For more than a millennium, the parish church was the spiritual centre of the surrounding villages. Its two Late Baroque side altars were created around 1738 by Veit Madersbacher, a cabinetmaker from Erding. Thus, one church brings together a Late Gothic ground plan and altars created later.
The Seelenkapelle (Chapel of Souls) is also located in the cemetery in Steinkirchen. Its brick shell building with a half-hipped roof dates from the early 16th century and has furnishings. Compared with the parish church, the chapel offers a second, somewhat later period of construction. For travellers interested in cultural history, this means there are two distinct points of interest in the same village: the parish church, with its Late Gothic structure and Late Baroque side altars, and the Seelenkapelle from the early 16th century.
Other churches in the municipality are located in Ebering and Kögning. The Catholic subsidiary church of St. Laurentius and St. Stephanus in Ebering is a small brick shell building from around 1300; its choir has a Late Gothic vault, and it has furnishings. In Kögning, the Catholic subsidiary church of St. Michael has a Late Gothic choir. The nave and tower date from 1733 and were the first work by Joh. Bapt. Lethner; this church also has furnishings. The location details distinguish these churches in Ebering and Kögning from those in the village of Steinkirchen.
Walking and Cycling Path towards Taufkirchen
A shared walking and cycling path runs along district road ED 26 from Steinkirchen towards Taufkirchen. The central section between Eldering and Kögning has been officially opened. If you are planning a continuous journey, check the route’s continuity in advance.
Culture and Local History in Erding
The Erding Farmhouse Museum gives Erding its own distinctive cultural and historical appeal. The museum comprises 15 architectural monuments relocated from the district of Erding and presents historical rural economic and everyday life in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It therefore focuses on the everyday and economic history of an earlier period, while the churches in Steinkirchen and the surrounding municipality convey architectural history. The former home and studio of Franz Xaver Stahl is furnished with historical furniture. The Biedermeier house dates from around 1840; the former studio has remained unchanged since Stahl’s death.
Erding’s history can also be explored in different ways. Guided city tours give residents and tourists insight into the history of the city and its buildings. A tour of the town tower takes visitors up one of Erding’s oldest buildings. After 163 steps, it reaches a height of 35 metres; the view extends across Erding and the surrounding area as far as Munich and, when the Föhn wind blows, to the Alpine panorama. For a different time commitment, Erding has themed trails: they take around an hour and lead through the old town, city districts or in the footsteps of artists. You can therefore choose between a guided exploration of local history, the view from the tower and a route lasting about an hour.
Discover more destinations: Dorfen, Bockhorn, Sankt Wolfgang, Pastetten, Walpertskirchen, Isen, Finsing, Fraunberg
Go to the main travel overview: Erding.
