Baselgia Sogn Gion The first documented mention of the originally fortified church complex dates back to the first half of the 12th century, when a "St. Johannis in Amite" was mentioned. The foundations of the massive tower, which with its two-meter-thick walls was probably built as a watchtower, date from that time. The current building was built over a previous building; remains of another tower from an unknown time were found next to the ossuary in 1982. The towers were part of a defensive structure to protect the nearby bridge that crossed the Rhine here at the time. The Gothic choir of the current church was built in 1504, the nave in 1515. On the occasion of the new consecration on July 5, 1515, the tower was raised by one storey. The Carinthian Andreas Bühler is believed to be the builder. In the second half of the 17th century, the choir stalls and the side altars were added to the church, as were the wall paintings of a Passion cycle; presumably by Father Fridolin Eggert. The gallery was built in 1837. Village The vestibule in the west from 1703 with its irregular floor plan was built on the remains of a surrounding wall that was part of the defense system. The baroque crucifixion group on the western outer wall dates from the beginning of the 18th century. The interior was renovated in 1946/47, during which the vault decorations from 1515 were rediscovered and earlier stylistic sins were removed. The outside of the church was renovated in 1960. In the 2010s, damage to the roof and tower had to be repaired several times as an emergency and loose stones became increasingly apparent. The cost of renovation was estimated at 5 million francs in 2018. The canton and federal government would together cover around 1.3 million francs. The owner of the ensemble, the Roman Catholic Church Foundation Sogn Gion of the parish, expected further contributions from the citizens and local community of Ems. Interior The nave and choir are covered with a diamond vault. The wall paintings date from a little after 1515. In the choir arch embrasure there is a coat of arms of the Lords of Marmels, who lived in the nearby Rhäzüns Castle until 1553. The wall paintings, a picture of St. John by the pulpit and two angels above the choir arch, date from 1689 and could have been by the Disentis Father Fridolin Eggert (1655–1709), who also painted the exterior picture on the ossuary. The late Gothic winged altar with St. John the Baptist as the central figure is dated 1504. There are various details about the creator; The sculptor's workshop of Niklaus Weckmann and Jörg Syring the Younger (* 1455) is mentioned. The two baroque altars date from 1686 and 1689. It is assumed that the Virgin Mary in the Marian altar originally stood in the main altar; the cut, the fall of the clothes and facial features indicate this. The choir stalls date from around 1670. The life-size St. John's bowl from 1515 is exhibited on the main altar every year on August 29th, the feast of the decollatio of St. John. Source: Wikipedia