Chorturmkirche (Sylbitz)
The Sylbitzer Chorturmkirche is one of the few almost unchanged Romanesque churches in the Saalekreis in Saxony-Anhalt . A special feature for this region is the tower in the east above the choir .
place
The small village of Sylbitz, (Saalekreis, approx. 10 km north of Halle ) is only a few kilometers southwest of the Petersberg, known for its collegiate church . In the historical sources, the place is first mentioned in 1260 as 'Sulwitz'. The pastor of Sylbitz is also mentioned in the confirmation of the purchase of Hufe land by the residents of the village for the benefit of their church. This is the first mention of the church as well as the indication that Sylbitz already had parish rights in this early phase .
Now part Sylbitz the parish area Teicha in the parish of Halle-Saale district of the Evangelical Church in Central Germany .
church
Through art - and building history studies in connection with the dendrochronological determination of timber from the tower area, an erection in the time around 1200 , i.e. H. at the time of the late Romanesque.
A special feature of the church can be seen in its construction as a choir tower church . While the tower of the village churches of the Saalkreis is usually in the west, it was built here in the east - above the choir . This construction variant, which is particularly preferred in the Franconian / Thuringian region, can only be found sporadically in the Halle region. In addition, the Sylbitz Church - in contrast to many other rural sacred buildings in the area - was hardly affected by serious construction work and has thus almost completely retained its original character. In the 17th century, the southern windows were only enlarged and a gallery , pulpit and stalls were installed. In 1863 the dilapidated morgue was replaced by today's portal porch in the same place.
Building description
The church consists of a rectangular hall , a recessed square choir tower and a semicircular apse . Boat and Tower are of gable roofs crowned. The masonry is made of the regional porphyry , only the corner connections and decorative shapes were made of sandstone.
Apse: In contrast to the rest of the building, the apse is made entirely of sandstone. This can be explained with the deliberate highlighting of this component as the location of the sanctuary, the altar, on the exterior.
Windows: The northern window front with the small high-seated arched openings and the apse window still show the actual form of the exposure. The southern windows, on the other hand, were enlarged in the Baroque period to increase the brightness. Due to the vestiges of clothing remaining in the masonry, the appearance and location of the old windows can be reconstructed. The former quatrefoil opening on the western nave gable and the oculus on the south wall of the tower can also be addressed as original . The bell chamber is broken by four biforias .
Portal: To be emphasized is the unusually complex design of the entrance for a village church. It is a stepped portal with a round bar frame , which is decorated with a tympanum resting on consoles . The tree of life is in the middle of the arched area, palmette leaves and rosettes to the left . They are to be interpreted as symbolism of paradise. The right half shows two animals, which can only be identified with reservation due to the rather handcrafted execution. It is clear, however, that the illustration is not based on biblical material, but symbolizes a fable (possibly “wolf and crane”).
Altar: high-quality stone carving shows u. a. inside the church. E.g. The overlying, simply profiled altar plate has a (now empty) sepulcrum in the middle for storing relics and elaborately designed consecration crosses on the western corners. To enable the priest to access the apse, the eastern front of the altar has been rounded off.
Wall paintings: Under the flat white whitewash in the choir area, reddish painting remains shimmer through in places, which are probably from medieval times.
Baptismal font: In the nave there is a chalice-shaped baptismal font from the 1st half of the 13th century.
Equipment: The other medieval inventory of the Sylbitzer church includes a dugout chest. The furniture made from an oak trunk was encased with iron bands for decoration and safety. It can be dated to the 13th century and may be part of the original equipment of the church. This also applies to the smaller of the two remaining bronze bells, which, due to its shape and the numismatic determination of an attached bracteate impression, dates back to around 1200. The gallery, pulpit and stalls are built-in fixtures from the end of the 17th century which, due to their simplicity, fit harmoniously into the overall picture. The gallery could be dendrochronologically dated to the year 1685. The small organ on the west gallery is also noteworthy, as it is an early mechanical work by the well-known Zörbig organ building company Rühlmann from 1877.
Support association
Decades of vacancy left the building to decay. In 2000, a support association for the rescue and restoration of the church was founded. As a result, the state of the building could be reduced to a usable level through donations of money, material and services. Today the church is used again as a house for worship services and a cultural meeting place.
literature
- Dirk Höhne: The Church of Sylbitz. "A strange building ..." . Small booklets on the preservation of monuments 2. Hall 2009. ISBN 978-3-939414-42-1
Web links
- Friends of the Chorturmkirche Sylbitz e. V. (detailed building description with many pictures, list of literature, current dates and documentation of the association's activities)
- Website of the parish on the website of the church district
Coordinates: 51 ° 34 ′ 40 ″ N , 11 ° 54 ′ 36 ″ E