Antonius Chapel (Großlangheim)
The St. Antonius Chapel in Großlangheim is a landmark of the Lower Franconian town. It stands on the main street across from the remains of the castle.
history
The chapel was first handed down from the time of Hermann III. zu Castell , who lived between 1311 and 1363. It was probably donated in 1342 or 1355 and completed by 1399. The building was initially the palace chapel of the nearby castle. Under Count Leonhard von Castell (1379–1426) the chapel received some of the village's goods as benefices , and in 1430 more were added.
In the 15th century the chapel received the frescos on the north wall of the nave, followed in the 16th century by several valuable figures from the Riemenschneider workshop and from the master’s environment. Three altars have survived in the chapel from 1597. However, they did not survive the Thirty Years' War and the Swedish occupation of Großlangheim. After the war, the damaged roof of the little church had to be repaired in 1647.
The Baroque renovation of the Antonius Chapel followed in the 18th century . Between 1727 and 1730 a double gallery was drawn in and a slab floor was laid. Externally, the chapel received a roof turret with a baroque dome and new doors. The village lords, meanwhile the Hochstift Würzburg , had a small organ with four registers installed in 1736. In total, the renovation costs amounted to 321 guilders.
With the secularization and the destruction of the church property, the chapel was threatened with demolition in 1803. The village leaders may have declared the church in disrepair in order to avert the impending expropriation. The Antonius Chapel was then closed for several decades. In the years 1888 and 1889, the church was extensively renovated in the neo-Gothic style . On October 27, 1889, the building was renamed by Pastor Jakob Imhof.
Another renovation took place in 1957. The roof was re-covered and the worst water damage was repaired. Between 1969 and 1977 the architects Erhard Neimann and Karl Rau from Kitzingen extensively restored the chapel. The building was sanctified on September 18, 1977 by Pastor Alfred Wanjek. Between 1995 and 1997, the church was partially restored due to moisture damage and worm infestation.
architecture
The Antonius Chapel is a Gothic hall building with a five-eighth choir, the sacristy with ribbed vault in the north of the choir was built later. The building is east-facing and has a small roof turret with a round dome and lantern in the east of the nave. The chapel closes at the top with a gable roof that merges into a hipped roof. Two ogival portals in the west and south of the nave lead into the interior of the church.
The Gothic door crown made of sandstone from the beginning of the 15th century begins with a coat of arms that combines the coats of arms of the lords of Castell, von Teck, von Hohenlohe and von Montfort , all of whom were involved in the rule of the village. The coat of arms is framed by the figures of Saint George (left), Antonius (right) and the Virgin Mary with the child (above). Several stonemason's marks are recognizable.
The north side of the nave has a narrow pointed arch window . A smaller, rectangular window was later installed above it. On the south side, to the right of the portal, there is a wider pointed arched window with Gothic tracery. The choir is illuminated by four two-lane pointed arched windows with rich tracery . In the interior of the church, the high, flat-roofed nave leads over to the much lower choir with cap vaults and grooved ribs. The consoles are made as pear-shaped or polygonal pointed consoles. In the choir, a Christ head forms the keystone of the vault ribs that run towards it.
Furnishing
High altar
The neo-Gothic high altar by the Würzburg cabinet maker Ludwig Link came into the chapel during the renovation of the 19th century and replaced a baroque altar. The oldest elements of the retable are the two late Gothic reliefs from the 16th century, which were painted into the altar. The artistic design was carried out by Karl Behrens from Würzburg, who made the figure of the Virgin Mary in the center of the altar. The altar is framed by the figures of St. Anthony with a pig and St. Benedict with a raven. Further inside there are two reliefs, the one on the left, The Adoration of the Magi is of neo-Gothic origin, the Entombment of Christ was created around 1520 and is similar to the works of Riemenschneider. It is 80 by 35 cm tall and shows the body of Christ laid in the grave by Mary , John the Evangelist , Mary Magdalene and Joseph of Arimathea. The altar, richly decorated with neo-Gothic ornaments, ends in three pinnacles . The Holy of Holies is behind a crenellated, red-framed tabernacle . The late Gothic relief on the antependium , the burial of the hermit Paul , measures 87 × 57 cm and shows the dead Paul as he is buried by Antonius the hermit. Two lions flank the scene. Both reliefs were probably painted in color later.
Frescoes
history
The cycle of frescoes on the north side of the nave wall and on the apse arch was created in the second half of the 14th and early 15th century and was commissioned by the Counts of Castell. An unknown artist gradually carried them out. During the baroque redesign of the chapel at the beginning of the 18th century, the frescoes were painted over. Only in the 1970s was the Antonius cycle exposed again. The picture cycle deals with the life of St. Anthony, with three branches of tradition serving as models. Some pictures are based on the Antony Vita of St. Athanasius , while others are based on the Legenda Aurea of Jacobus de Voragine . Some of the images refer to legends handed down orally. The scenes were not lined up chronologically. The Antonius frescoes are the only completely preserved medieval cycle in Germany.
description
The first picture was almost completely destroyed by moisture. Perhaps the “meeting with a hermit” was depicted here, which is reported in the Antony Vita. The second picture in the top row is little more preserved. You can clearly see Roman arches and a wide river in the background. Again the fresco refers to the Vita of Athanasius, in which Antonius retired to a Roman fort to fast.
On the third picture you can see St. Anthony on the right side with his hands folded in prayer. The background was marked by rock walls. A small demon with a human face and animal hooves speaks to the saint. Here the "temptation by a demon" or "The encounter with the black boy" is shown, which is described both in the Vita and in the Legenda Aurea. After the demon failed in the virtue of Antony, he withdrew.
The fourth picture, again badly affected, points to the meditative retreat of Antonius in “forests and grave caves”. On the right side the friend could be seen closing the cave of Antony with a stone. On the fifth fresco, the first of the second row, the "temptation to riches" is depicted. The devil , on the right, points to a golden ball and other riches, the saint wards off temptation with his hands.
In a legend of Antoniusvita the "appearance of the devil in the form of a woman" is treated, in the sixth picture of the cycle this occurrence is treated as well. On the right you can see the woman with a mirror in her hand, Antonius is praying while another hermit observes the situation. The seventh picture shows "Anthony in Alexandria ". Anthony visited the Christians in Alexandria to strengthen their faith. The saint can be seen in the middle, he is surrounded by people. A church can be seen in the background.
The eighth fresco, the fourth in the second row, deals with the “Farewell of Antony from his sister”. On the left is a woman, opposite the saint. The representation does not fit into the chronology of the events, and the scene is also missing. This fresco was probably created as one of the last and was added later in an empty space.
Chronologically, the ninth representation, "The vision of the plundering of the church", is added to picture seven. Anthony stands in front of an altar with a blessing on which a chalice is depicted. A second man in the background, perhaps a priest , is watching the scene. On the tenth picture you can see "Antonius sleeps like a dead man". Again demons had tortured the saint until he fell to the ground as if dead. A mourning companion of Antonius is depicted to the right of the sleeping man.
The eleventh fresco shows "The blessing of men by the saint". Antony, in the midst of a crowd, raises his hand in blessing. The healing of a sick person may also be treated in the picture. On the twelfth picture you can see the "devil in the form of a giant ". The representation is, however, disturbed by the gallery built in the 18th century . On the left side you can see the devil bumping his head to the top of the picture as if he were touching the sky.
Figure 13 of the cycle seems to unite two legends. On the one hand "The Speech to the Monks", on the other hand "The Confrontation with the Pagan Philosophers" could have been worked. Seated figures engage in a speech duel with Antonius, a companion of the saint turns to Antonius. “Farewell to the monks ”, the fourteenth fresco again shows Antonius in a crowd. The depictions on the north wall of the chapel end with this legend.
The other two frescoes, both attached to the north apse arch, are dedicated to the earthly end of St. Anthony. The lower of the two (Fig. 15), partially covered by a figure of a saint, shows the “ Entombment of Antony” by two of his brothers. The sixteenth picture ends round at the top. It shows "The Glorification of Antony". The saint is lifted up to heaven by two angels .
Figures from the Riemenschneider workshop
Several figures from the Riemenschneider workshop are in the chapel. They came to the church between the years 1510-1515. Heinz Truchseß von Langheim, the then village lord of Großlangheim, was on friendly terms with the Würzburg prince-bishop Lorenz von Bibra and through him established contacts with the artist's workshop. However, it is unclear whether the depictions of saints go back to a gift from the bishop or a purchase from the village lord. Initially, the figures were in a shrine to a retable.
During a comprehensive restoration of the mostly natural wooden figures in 1966, the personal involvement of Riemenschneider himself was recognized. It is expressed in the subtlety of the faces, the fine folds of the robes and the delicate hands. Furthermore, similarities to the Johannes figures in Creglingen and Rothenburg ob der Tauber were noticed in the depiction of Laurentius . A definitive assignment of the three figures is difficult, however.
On the left side of the apse arch, below the fresco cycle, is the figure of the patron James the Elder . James is shown as an old man dressed in a pilgrim's robe. The figure of the saint is 145 cm high and is made of linden wood . James wears the typical pilgrim hat, his coat reaches to the ground. With his left hand he draws the coat, the right is on the pilgrim's pocket hidden in the robe.
St. Anthony can be found on the right side of the apse arch. At 153 cm, the figure is the largest of the saints and was also carved from linden wood. The saint's headgear identifies him as a monk. In his left hand he holds the gospel open to his heart. The right hand is spread sideways from the body and was originally equipped with a T-shaped crutch. Antonius is portrayed as an old man . His curly beard is artfully parted.
The carving of St. Lawrence can also be found on the right-hand side of the choir arch . As the smallest figure, it measures only 133 cm and, like the other two, was made of lime wood. Laurentius is depicted with a curly hair. In his right hand he carries the Gospel, the left one, empty today, used to have a rust that was supposed to illustrate his suffering. The robe is rich in folds; Laurentius is shown as a deacon with dalmatic and alb.
A special feature among the figures in the chapel is Saint Anne herself . On the one hand, the picture is below the gallery, and on the other hand, she is the only figure that is colored. Saint Anne is 88 cm high and has the baby Jesus sitting on her lap. In her right hand is the young Maria who is looking up from a book. The group of figures resembles a work by the master that can be found today in the Mainfränkisches Museum in Würzburg.
Bells
At first there were two smaller bells in the roof turret of the chapel . The larger of the two broke up in 1651 and was replaced by a new one. Again the larger of the two was destroyed in 1843, followed by the smaller bell in 1864. A bell had to be re-cast in 1917 and was replaced in 1930. Both bells were drawn in during World War II and had to be re-cast in 1959. The executing company was the Heidelberg bell founder Schilling.
| Surname | Keynote | year |
|---|---|---|
| Maria Goretti Bell | e | 1959 |
| Nikolaus-von-der-Flüe bell | G | 1959 |
Further equipment
The baroque crucifixion group is remarkable , which is today, painted in color, on the gallery and originally adorned the high altar. There are also several stations of the cross on the gallery. They come from the neo-Gothic style and came here in the 19th century. At the same time, the figures of St. Francis of Assisi with the cross, and of Anthony of Padua with a lily and the baby Jesus were made. You can find them on the choir walls today.
Neo-Gothic stained glass windows can also be admired in the choir. They show (from left to right) Saint Agnes and Saint Catherine of Alexandria , Saint Elisabeth of Thuringia and Empress Kunigunde , as well as Saint Margaret and Saint Barbara and are therefore dedicated to the great women of church history. The Würzburg company Niebler und Burkert was responsible for the glass windows.
literature
- Georg Dehio: Handbook of the German art monuments. Bavaria I: Franconia . Munich / Berlin 1999, ISBN 3-422-03051-4 .
- Iris Kalden-Rosenfeld: Tilman Riemenschneider and his workshop . Königstein im Taunus 2011, ISBN 978-3-7845-3225-7 .
- Petro Müller: The Antonius Chapel in Großlangheim . Schweinfurt 1997, ISBN 3-930285-70-3 .
- Karl Treutwein : Lower Franconia . Heroldsberg 1978, ISBN 3-7738-1015-5 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Petro Müller: The Antonius Chapel in Großlangheim. 1997, p. 6.
- ^ Petro Müller: The Antonius Chapel in Großlangheim. 1997, p. 8.
- ^ Karl Treutwein: Lower Franconia. 1978, p. 220.
- ↑ Count Castell's culture trail: Großlangheim , accessed on September 19, 2014.
- ^ Petro Müller: The Antonius Chapel in Großlangheim. 1997, p. 7 f.
- ^ Georg Dehio: Handbook of German Art Monuments. 1999, p. 406.
- ^ Hans Bauer: District of Kitzingen. P. 62.
- ^ Petro Müller: The Antonius Chapel in Großlangheim. 1997, pp. 28-44.
- ↑ While Müller (p. 46) gives these numbers, Kalden-Rosenfeld (p. 155) assumes the year 1509.
- ↑ Cf. Iris Kalden-Rosenfeld: Tilman Riemenschneider and his workshop. 2011, p. 155 f.
- ^ Petro Müller: The Antonius Chapel in Großlangheim. 1997, pp. 46-52.
Web links
Coordinates: 49 ° 45 '17.4 " N , 10 ° 14' 11.8" E