Mutt (Zmutt) chapel
“Heilige Katharina von Alexandrien”. Z’mutt, Zmutt and Mutt are all names for this huddled hamlet, which is more than 500 years old. At its heart stands this small white chapel, well worth a visit on the leisurely walk from Zermatt to Zmutt.
The hamlet of Zmutt lies a short hour’s walk south-west of Zermatt at an altitude of 1,936 m. In the old dialect of Zermatt, a “Mutt” is a rounded summit on a rocky slope. In addition to the “White House” from the year 1595, the hamlet has a rectangular baroque chapel with a recessed choir and a small bell tower over the entrance. It is dedicated to St Catherine of Alexandria, the second patron saint of Valais, and is a place of calm that the shepherds of the region liked to visit for their prayers.
The year 1727 can be seen on the sun-burned entrance doors, and probably indicates the year of construction. The nave with its two windows to the south has a wooden ceiling, while the choir has a type of groined vault made of stone that ends in a circle.
Antiquated German
The small baroque altar with the chapel saint has been kept simple, the title figure framed by two plain pillars without ornamentation. St Catherine is portrayed with a sword and a broken wheel, because the wheel broke during her execution. She is flanked by two female figures with the palm branch of martyrs. Since the attributes are missing, we can unfortunately no longer say which saints they represent. The pinnacle contains the mater dolorosa.
Depictions of the Stations of the Cross hang on the walls of the nave. The inscriptions are in a distinctive form of German; note the unusual style.
- Interesting inscriptions on the Stations of the Cross
- Photo subjects: depictions of the Stations of the Cross