Bad Mitterndorfer Nikolospiel

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The Bad Mitterndorfer Nikolospiel is a historical custom in the Hinterberger Valley , which, with all its places, belongs to the market town of Bad Mitterndorf in the Styrian Salzkammergut in Austria .

On the evening of December 5th of each year, i.e. on the eve of St. Nicholas ' Day, a crowd of figures in disguise around Bishop Nicholas, some with frightening wooden masks, walks through the towns and plays a rural everyone's game about the death of a poor man. The game follows a long-standing, partially rhymed text.

The figures

A fixed sequence is strictly observed on the train. Up to three sacristans in choir shirts hurry up to collect money from the bystanders for the children's gifts. The top of the train is formed by ten so-called scrapers (also known as straw scrabs). These are men completely clad in straw with long horns made of straw-wrapped hazel whips. They bang (click) in time with their whips ( goassels ) to clear the road.

Three straw scraps on the oldest photo from the St. Nicholas game

The next ones go in pairs, first of all quartermakers and night watchmen . The first one, in police uniform, asks to be admitted to the next venue and ensures order on the train. The night watchman carries a lantern, halberd and bugle.

This is followed by Ghost Rider and Barchtl . The white horse is a portable imitation over two meters long, with which spectators are pushed back at the venue and space is created. The barchtl with a smiling wooden mask and humpback basket gives presents to the children during the performance.

The next pair is made up of scroll carriers and angels . The role bearer with six horns and black fur is a raging fellow. The angel has long blond hair and soothes the role-bearer. This is followed by bishop and pastor as well as beggar and death , the latter with a skull mask and scythe.

Habergeiß and blacksmith : The Habergeiß in a white robe carries a goat's head on a pole, which can snap shut and reach for the spectators' clothing. The blacksmith in work clothes hits the hammer close to the feet of the audience during the performance. He used to nail the long clothes to the floor.

The devil comes in two forms, a long-necked married devil and a Lucifer , followed by the blacks in black sheepskin coats and with a horned wooden mask. They wear a band around their stomach and beat with a rod. Two of them, the Lucifer Owners , initially hold Lucifer on a chain. The decision is made by the Nikolo hunter with a sack and a rifle. He monitors the blacks and ensures that they go around without accidents.

The description here refers to the Bad Mitterndorfer train. There are small deviations in the other districts.

The performance

After the lodger has received permission from the landlord to let his journeymen in, the night watchman comes and warns to watch out for fire and light. The Schimmelreiter circles the performance area and symbolically drives away the evil spirits. Now the role bearer storms in and scares the children. But the angel appeases him and now greets Bishop Nicholas and the pastor.

The bishop addressed those present and asked the pastor to examine the children after his sermon. After a positive outcome of the exam, the barchtl distributes his gifts to the children.

Now the beggar asks the pastor to take his confession from him. He tells his atrocities with euphemistic formulations and shows no remorse. He does not want to admit that he can be recalled at any time. Then death appears and strikes him down. Two black people drag him out. Once again the bishop addresses all those who have gathered together in earnest and admonishing words to take what has just happened to heart. Then he leaves the room with the pastor.

Now the marriage devil storms in and explains in his sermon how he does it to destroy a marriage. Next comes Lucifer impetuously, still on the chain of the Lucifer owners, but from whom he can escape after his sermon, which together with the blacks who have now penetrated leads to a great tumult. The night watchman's horn signal puts an end to the hustle and bustle.

history

The origin of what happened cannot be determined. But the costumed street parade at least points to references to pre-Christian times, when cult dancers wrapped themselves in the skins of the sacrificed animals for the victory of the sun over the darkness. Christianity could not completely displace the old customs and opposed the dark figures, especially since the time of the Counter Reformation (16th and 17th centuries), with the lighter ones in the form of Bishop Nicholas, angels and priests. The beginning of the instructive text sermons should also fall during this time, which has not changed significantly since it was written down around the turn of the 20th century. Since the texts were similar over a wider area than today, it is also believed that they could have come from a common source such as a monastery.

Official proof of the Mitterndorfer Nikolospiel is a permit from the community council from 1862.

There used to be games like this in many other places in the Salzkammergut and the Ennstal , but they have been forgotten due to lack of interest or have been banned due to excesses. In Mitterndorf, the game was retained throughout, with the exception of the two world wars. There never were riots.

In addition to the Bad Mitterndorfer event, in which the St. Nicholas parade leads over five kilometers from the district of Krungel to the center of the village with five performances of the St. Nicholas Play and lasts over four hours, there are St. Nicholas plays in the districts of Tauplitz with two performances and Pichl-Kainisch with three performances. The masks and costumes of the Bad Mitterndorfer Nikolospiel can be viewed in the local history museum throughout the year.

The Bad Mitterndorfer Nikolospiele exert a great attraction even beyond the valley. She was featured on television and coaches with many interested parties come from far away.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ An original text from the second half of the 19th century is in the Vienna Völkerkundemuseum . Additions date from the 1920s. (Nikolospiel Bad Mitterndorf - History)
  2. ↑ corresponds elsewhere to the St. Nicholas companion Krampus
  3. ↑ Heaven, Death and the Devil. History and present of the Ennstaler Nikolospiele. Retrieved November 11, 2016 .
  4. ↑ History. Retrieved November 11, 2016 .
  5. ↑ Traditional St. Nicholas game Bad Mitterndorf. Retrieved November 11, 2016 .
  6. ↑ Nicholas Museum-Tauplitz. Retrieved November 11, 2016 .
  7. ↑ Nikologruppe Kumitz. Retrieved November 11, 2016 .
  8. ↑ Local history museum Strick. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on November 13, 2016 ; accessed on November 11, 2016 .
  9. ↑ The charm of masks - the Tauplitz St. Nicholas Games. Retrieved November 11, 2016 .
  10. ↑ Customs Roas: Nikolospiel Bad Mitterndorf. Retrieved November 11, 2016 .