Bressanone cathedral cloister
The Brixen cathedral cloister is one of the most important art monuments in South Tyrol. It was created in the pre-Romanesque period and was later redesigned in Romanesque and Gothic styles. With the adjacent buildings - including Brixner Dom , Johanneskapelle and Frauenkirche - the cloister represents the center of the cathedral district. It is famous above all for its frescoes from the Gothic period.
investment
The cloister is on the south side of the cathedral and is connected to it by an entrance. The inner courtyard is almost square (approx. 20 × 20 m), in its center there is a stone death lamp from around 1500. The four surrounding arcades are not the same width, the widest is the north wing adjacent to the cathedral. The window openings of the cloister to the inner courtyard are unglazed.
In addition to the cathedral in the north, there are other buildings adjacent to the cloister: in the south the Johannes chapel and the cathedral school and above the chapter house, in the east the canon court and in the west the Frauenkirche, whose apse is even a little in the area of the 8th arcade the cloister protrudes into it, as well as ancillary buildings of the old canon court. Thus the cloister forms the center of the cathedral district.
history
Today's cloister goes back to a pre-Romanesque complex that still had the classic shape of two five and two four arcades and corner arcades, so that the inner courtyard measured about 20 × 25 m at that time. After the fire in the cathedral in 1174, it received a transept arm that was pushed forward to the south, which made it necessary to move the north wing of the cloister towards the inner courtyard. The Romanesque south portal of the cathedral was also built at that time. Around 1200 the remaining part of the cloister was redesigned and received its marble double columns with leaf and bud capitals. The Romanesque cloister was covered with a flat monopitch roof and open roof truss. This later contradicted the spatial perception of the 14th century, which preferred the vaulting of sacred buildings. It is believed that Bishop Friedrich von Erdingen (1375-1396) initiated the redesign and that it was carried out by Master Utz (o), who was buried in the cloister. At that time, today's groin vaults of the arcades were created.
In later times there were no significant changes to the cloister, with the exception of the demolition of the St. Christoph chapel on the northwest corner, where access to the cathedral square was created and a round pillar supporting the vault was inserted between the eighth and ninth arcades. The staircase to the chapter house in the southeast corner was probably built in the early 17th century. When the baroque cathedral was rebuilt, the cloister remained largely untouched.
Painting
Even before the vaulting, the cloister was painted, mainly using the red chalk technique . Traces of this early Gothic painting can be found in the 1st and 14th arcade. During the restoration work, several superimposed layers of paint were often found.
Today's fresco painting was created from around 1390 after the Gothic redesign of the cloister. It took place gradually during the 15th and until the beginning of the 16th century, mostly on behalf of the canons who were buried in the cloister. So there was no uniform image program, even if some arcades belong together thematically. Particularly popular motifs such as the birth of Christ also appear several times. On the other hand, you can follow the development of late Gothic painting in one place through the successive painting. The names of the artists are mostly unknown, but stylistic attributions are possible, for example to the masters Leonhard von Brixen and Ruprecht Potsch with their workshops. Most of the artists were locals, but wandering artists from Italy and Germany also took part in the painting. One differentiates:
- Soft-style pictures (1390–1440) with idealized figures and motifs (4th and 9th to 13th arcade),
- beginning naturalism of the late Gothic around the middle of the 15th century (2nd, 3rd, 5th, 14th and 15th arcade) as well
- Late medieval art, which dominated landscape and body, in the last third of the 15th century (1st and 6th to 8th arcade).
The frescoes have been restored by the South Tyrolean Monuments Office over the past few decades and are in good condition.
The arcades are counted clockwise, starting in the middle of the south wing with the first painted arcade.
First arcade
_Grab_Christoph_Fuchs_von_Fuchsberg_(Kopf).JPG)
The first arcade with the sarcophagus of Prince-Bishop Christoph Fuchs von Fuchsberg († 1542) is in the south wing, to the left of the former south entrance.
The painting was done by Domdean Dr. Benedikt Fieger († 1490 in Vienna) donated and executed by the Brixen painter Ruprecht Potsch around 1490.
- Vault
- Four scenes from the life of the Apostle Paul : sermon on the Areopagus of Athens , interrogation by the Roman governor Festus , shipwreck off Malta , the saint remains unharmed in Malta after a snake bite .
- South wall
- The apostle John on Patmos looks in a vision at the apocalyptic woman , donor figure of the cathedral dean Fieger with coat of arms . Remains of older frescoes can also be seen.
Second arcade
The painting was donated by Johannes Sailer († 1462) and executed around 1465 by several artists from the workshop of master Leonhard von Brixen . The central theme is the saving suffering of Christ.
- Vault
- Scenes that point to the suffering of Christ: the evil vintners murder the son of the vineyard owner , the spies return home with the giant grape (Book Numbers / Moses 4, Chapter 13), King Hanon mocks David's messengers by cutting off their beards and robes , Christ carrying the cross
- South wall
- Apeme gives King Darius a slap (reference to the slapped Christ), Christ is crowned with thorns . Donor figure of Johannes Sailer
- North wall above the row of windows
- Archangel Michael with the balance scales , Saint Catherine
Carrying the Cross
Return of the scouts with the giant cluster
Third arcade
The entrance to the Johannes Chapel ( St. Johannes in the cloister ) is located in this arcade on the southwest corner of the cloister . The depiction of Christ's suffering with models from the Old Testament is continued here. The frescoes were created at the same time and by the same workshop as those of the second arcade. The crucifixion fresco on the west wall, on the other hand, was painted by Jakob von Seckau , a forerunner of Leonhard von Brixen, around 1450 .
- Vault
- Entombment of Christ , the founder notary Paul Greußlinger , Saint Dorothea , the Egyptian Joseph is thrown into the cistern by his brothers , Jonah is devoured by the fish , Achior is bound by the servants of Holofernes , Job is beaten by the devil and by his wife and two friends mocked , Eleazar Avaran kills a war elephant and is crushed by it ( 1 Makk 6,43-46 EU )
- South wall
- Ecce Homo , John the Baptist with a donor figure
- West wall
- Crucifixion of Christ with the thieves and donor Ingenuin Brandel († 1448)
Vault of the 3rd arcade
Eleazar is crushed by a war elephant
Fourth arcade
This and the following arcades are located in the west wing of the cloister. The important painting of this arcade in the courtly style is the work of the master Hans von Bruneck from the year 1417.
- Vault
- Four glory angels , the four evangelists , the four western church fathers (Saints Ambrose , Jerome , Augustine and Gregory the Great ) and eight prophets
- East wall above the row of windows
- West wall
- The fresco of the birth of Jesus and the Adoration of the Magi was removed and is now in the Diocesan Museum. The sketch lines of the Adoration of the Magi can still be seen. Instead, previously covered frescoes from the 14th century have become visible, which show the martyrdom of Saint Christina in red chalk .
Fifth arcade
The resurrection of Christ is the theme of this arcade, whose frescoes by Leonhard von Brixen from around 1472. It also depicts scenes from the Old Testament that indicate the resurrection. Inscriptions explain the pictures. The founder is Johannes von Firmian († 1471).
- Vault
- David beheads Goliath , Samson in the fight with the lion and with the excavated city gates , Jonah rises from the belly of the fish , Christ is resurrected , Reuben is looking for his brother Joseph in the cistern , the bride of the Song of Songs is looking for her bridegroom , the risen Christ appears to Mary of Magdala in the garden and is mistaken for the gardener by her , Daniel in the lions' den is visited by the king . The keystone shows the name Maria .
- East wall above the row of windows
- Joseph reveals himself to his brothers in Egypt , Christ visits the dead in the underworld
- West wall
- Lamenting women at the grave of Christ , the founder with the saints Johannes and Ulrich
Resurrection of Christ, including a prophet
Mary Magdalene meets the risen one
Mary Magdalene thinks the risen One is the gardener
Samson's fight with the lion
Sixth arcade
The frescoes in this arcade revolve around the special position of Mary in salvation history. The representations are partly based on apocrypha . They were donated by Berchtold Soldwedel († 1482), and were probably created by Ruprecht Potsch around 1482 .
- Vault
- The golden table fished out of the sea as a symbol of the rising sun , the root of Jesse , King Astyages sees in a dream a world-wide vine sprout from his daughter Mandane , Abiatar rejects Joachim's sacrifice because of his childlessness (before Mary's birth) , Jiftach sacrifices his daughter , the Queen of Persia enjoys her hanging gardens , an angel announces the birth of Mary to Joachim and Anna, Joachim and Anna meet at the Golden Gate
- East wall above the row of windows
- The founder with the saints Pantaleon and Katharina , the closed garden and the sealed well as symbols of Mary , an angel blocks Balaam 's way
- West wall
- Sacrifice of the Virgin in the Temple ; this fresco is badly damaged.
Seventh arcade
The main picture of this arcade is the Pietà on the west wall, donated by Gregor Sybar († 1443) and painted in the middle of the 15th century by Leonhard von Brixen . The other frescoes on the vault and on the east wall were not made until the end of the 15th century and are probably by Ruprecht Potsch . Her central theme is the virginity of Mary. The symbols shown are partly taken from ancient writings, partly from the church teachers, as well as from the defense of the virginity of Mary by Franz von Retz around 1400.
- Vault
- Representation of various symbols of virginity, including the Cappadocian horse , which rejuvenates in the course of time , the vestal virgin Tuscia carries water in a sieve as a sign of her innocence , a lioness brings her stillborn cubs to life by roaring , the charista bird rejuvenates in the fire , the pelican nourishes its cubs with its heart's blood , the she-bear forms her cubs beautifully by licking them , the phoenix bird risen from the ashes
- East wall above the row of windows
- The vestal Claudia uses her belt to make a stuck ship afloat again , the bird Calander attracts human diseases with his gaze
- West wall
- Pietà with founder Gregor Sybar († 1443), Saint Catherine as well as King David and the prophet Isaiah
Vault of the 7th arcade
West wing, 7th and 8th arcade
Eighth arcade
This arcade on the north-west corner of the cloister borders on the apse of the Frauenkirche (Our Lady in the Cloister), which protrudes a little into the arcade. The frescoes on the west wall, i.e. the apse of the Frauenkirche, were created by an unknown master at the beginning of the 15th century. The vault frescos were created later, around 1477, as a foundation by Erhard Zanger († 1474). Here, too, the painter is unknown, although a master Hans is possible.
- Vault
- Adam and Eve in the Fall with the seven main sins and the seven punishments in hell , Frau Welt hands a cup of pleasure to a knight in armor , wisdom (remnants of a destroyed fresco of the Annunciation with the seven main virtues ), the founder Erhard Zanger with Saint Barbara , the prophet Isaiah and King David with banners ; Isaiah's banner gives information about the founder and the time when the fresco was created.
- West wall
- Christ on the Mount of Olives with the three sleeping apostles , Saint Dorothea , the apostle Bartholomäus , descent from the cross
Christ on the Mount of Olives with the three sleeping apostles
Adam and Eve in the fall with the 7 main sins
Ninth arcade
This and the following arcades are located in the north wing of the cloister, which adjoins the cathedral. The central theme of this Christmas arcade is the Incarnation of Christ. In addition to scenes from the Christmas story, there are also scenes from the Old Testament that indicate the Incarnation of Christ. The courtly style frescoes were created around 1400 by an unknown master. The Pietà on the cathedral wall was only created around 1509 and is the latest fresco of the cloister.
- Vault
- Annunciation of Christ , Yahweh's curse on the serpent , Gideon's fleece (symbol of the Immaculate Conception of Mary), Nativity , Burning bush and Aaron's blooming staff , Adoration of the Magi , Abner before King Saul and the Queen of Sheba , Presentation in the temple , the cleansing offering and Samuel's sacrifice , plus numerous prophets .
- South wall above the row of windows
- North face
- Pietà in the open landscape as well as remains of older frescoes
Vault of the 9th arcade
Birth of Christ
Adoration of the Magi
North wing, in the foreground the 9th arcade
Tenth arcade
Praise for virtue and rebuke of vice are the teaching theme of this arcade, which is represented in the vault. The vault frescos were created around 1390 by an unknown master. Particularly impressive, however, is the fresco on the cathedral wall, which shows the Annunciation to Mary and the Incarnation of Christ. It was created by another unknown master in the Central Italian style around 1410.
- Vault
- The self-righteous Pharisee and the humble tax collector , redeemed humanity emerges from the slashed belly of the monster Leviathan , the stingy and the generous woman , the handling of an eager and a negligent bishop with their talents , the indifferent woman and her helpful husband
- Pillar wall
- Miles christianus , John the Baptist , benefactor figure
- North face
- Annunciation and Incarnation of Christ ; The portrayal of Christ is interesting, who is carried from God to Mary by angels. Including the Lamentation of Christ by a Bohemian influenced master
- South wall above the row of windows
Annunciation (above) and Lamentation (below)
10th arcade
Eleventh arcade
The side entrance to the cathedral used to be located here; the Romanesque portal from the end of the 12th century is walled up. The frescoes are by the same unknown master as those of the tenth and twelfth arcades. Their content is tailored to church access.
- Vault
- Works of mercy: sheltering strangers, feeding the hungry, burying the dead, visiting the sick, comforting prisoners, clad the naked , the rich man and poor Lazarus ; the keystone of the vault shows the face of Christ .
- North face
- A bishop with a banner teaches the churchgoers , the Tiburtine Sibyl announces the birth of Christ to Emperor Augustus
- South wall above the row of windows
Twelfth arcade
Friedrich von Erdingen († 1396) had the vault frescos painted around 1390, which were created by the same unknown master as those of the tenth and eleventh arcades.
- Vault
- Friedrich von Erdingen was first bishop of Chur , then of Brixen. The vault frescos therefore represent the patrons of both dioceses : Charlemagne , Simon Petrus , Kassian , Ingenuin , Albuin , Pirmin , Sebastian , Gertraud, Ottilia, Lucia, Lucius, Florinus, Arbogast, Theobald
- Wall pillars
- Founder Johannes von Seng († 1394), Saint Erasmus
- North face
- Christ as the Man of Sorrows in the Tumba , Saints Agnes, Mary and John the Evangelist , Madonna enthroned with Saints Andrew and Georg , founder Peter Nangenor († 1410), Christophorus as a counterpart to Miles christianus
- South wall above the row of windows
- Saints Felix, Regula, Exuperantius and Alexius
Thirteenth Arcade
This arcade is located in the northeast corner of the cloister. When the cathedral was rebuilt in the 18th century, the groin vault was largely destroyed and only restored in 1960. Most of the frescoes date from the beginning of the 15th century.
- Vault
- Except for the depiction of the Assumption of Mary into heaven , the frescoes have been destroyed.
- North face
- Annunciation (composed of fragments), the birth of Christ with two saints and two donors
- East wall
- Adoration of the Kings with Saint Lambert (dated 1410), ornamental strips with the Man of Sorrows and donor figure , death shield of Konrad Schaller von Rottenbuch († 1413), replica of the death shield ; The reason for this replica was that the original was covered by a new fresco in 1426, which has been removed and kept in the Diocesan Museum.
Fourteenth arcade
This and the following arcades are located in the east wing of the cloister. The frescoes were created around 1463 by the workshop of the master Leonhard von Brixen and show the seven joys of Mary with Old Testament models.
- Vault
- Rebecca at the Well , the burning bush , the fleece of Gideon , Visitation , Nativity , Presentation in the Temple
- West wall above the row of windows
- Annunciation
- East wall
- Finding of Jesus in the temple , coronation of Mary with the donor Johannes Grizimola († 1463)
Fifteenth arcade
The frescoes on the east wall are painted in the courtly style of the first half of the 15th century. The other frescoes in this arcade date from after 1450 and come from the environment of the master Leonhard von Brixen .
- Vault
- Only fragments of the vault frescos have survived: two angels , the flight to Egypt , Moses with the glowing coal , the cleansing bath of the Syrian general Naaman , who is sick with leprosy , the brazen sea
- East wall
- Madonna enthroned with Saints Ulrich, Leonhard , Katharina and Barbara , the founder Johann Nobilis († 1456?), Daniel , Aaron's staff , Augustus and the Sibyl , Balaam
- West wall above the row of windows
- The three disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration
Unpainted arcades
The south-east corner of the cloister (16th – 20th arcade) was never painted. There shopkeepers were allowed to offer their goods for sale and the cathedral students were allowed to stay.
Unpainted arcades in the south wing
literature
- Hans Semper: The Brixen painting schools of the 15th and 16th centuries and their relationship to Michael Pacher. In: Journal of the Ferdinandeum. Episode 3. Issue 35. Innsbruck: Wagner 1891, pp. 1–133.
- Jeanne Peipers: La septième arcade du cloître de Brixen et le defensorium de Franz von Retz (1353-1427). Strasbourg 1985.
- Evi Wierer: The cathedral cloister in Brixen: Function and meaning of the fresco decoration between 1462 and 1490. Vienna, Univ., Dipl.-Arb., 2000.
- Karl Wolfsgruber : The Brixen cathedral district. 9th edition. Edited by Johann Mayr . Self-published by the cathedral administration, Athesiadruck, Bozen 2011.
Georg Tinkhauser: The old cloister of the Episcopal Minster in Brixen in the Mittheilungen der Kaiser. royal Central Commission for Research and Conservation of Architectural Monuments, No. 2, Volume I, 1856, (category with associated images on Commons )
- The restoration of the Romanesque cloister at the episcopal cathedral in Brixen in the messages of the emperors. royal Central Commission for Research and Conservation of Architectural Monuments, No. 5, Volume II, 1857, (category with associated images on Commons )
Web links
- The cathedral cloister in the monument browser on the website of the South Tyrolean Monuments Office
Coordinates: 46 ° 42 ′ 56.1 ″ N , 11 ° 39 ′ 28.4 ″ E