Three hares picture

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The three hares window in Paderborn Cathedral
Three hares in the churchyard of St. Peter and Paul in Kirchhundem

The three hares picture shows three jumping hares arranged in a circle. A description of this symbol can also be found in the verse: "The rabbit and the spoon have three, and yet every rabbit has two". Three rabbits are arranged in such a way that each rabbit has two ears, but only three ears are shown on the motif.

The three-hare picture appears in different places and in different cultures around the world. Its original meaning is not clear. It is often viewed as an archetype . The tricephalus , triceps or triphons represent a similar form of figure union, but with three human heads . In general, such three-part symmetrical figures are called triskeles .

Some early painted Easter eggs show the three-rabbit image, suggesting it could be a symbol for the Trinity . The connection between the Easter egg and the picture of a rabbit led to the development of the figure of the Easter bunny . The rabbit is also considered a symbol of fertility .

Coat of arms of Bishop Paul-Werner Scheele from 1975

An example of the picture of the three hares can be found as tracery (known as the " three hares window ") in the cloister of Paderborn Cathedral . In the old town of Paderborn there are a number of manhole covers of the municipal drainage company (manhole covers) with the symbol. The image of the three hares can also be found in the Haslocher and Haseder coat of arms, as well as a keystone in the Peter and Paul Church in Wissembourg in Alsace. In Switzerland, such a representation can be found in the choir arch of the Lauperswil church . The three-rabbit picture was also taken up by modern artists, such as Hans Thoma , who designed a three-rabbit plate.

When the Paderborn theology professor and cathedral provost Paul-Werner Scheele (1928-2019) was appointed Paderborn Auxiliary Bishop in 1975, he included the three-hare symbol in his bishop's coat of arms in order to represent that which has been represented by some Catholic theologians and art historians for many decades The thesis that the rabbit trio is a symbol of the divine trinity (Trinity) is to be substantiated. When he was appointed bishop of Würzburg in 1979 , the coat of arms changed with him to the Main. The interpretation of the three rabbits as a symbol of the Trinity faded more and more in the following decades. The view of a motif that has wandered through several continents, world religions and cultures since the 6th century (Buddhist cave painting near Dunhuang in China), on the other hand, gained more and more space. Scheele, meanwhile intensively networked in ecumenism, switched to looking at his long-eared heraldic animals through humorous glasses. He dedicated the poem "Viribus Auribusque Unitis" (With combined strength and ears) to the rabbits :

“Every rabbit has two ears. / And here everyone got lost. / The target is six, this is only three. / And appearance and being are two different things. / What is the stonemason up to? / What thought is in the picture? / The ears are on the forehead, / What is heard flows into three brains. / Third self is thus considered here / what causes worry or joy. / When combined, some things are easier / in both rabbit and human life. / And what's more, what you see / is a variant of the Trinity. "

In the 1920s, the Westphalian Franciscan Father Beda Kleinschmidt (1867–1932) from Brakel (Höxter district) was one of the theological and art-historical advocates of the mythical animals circling in the Paderborn rabbit window as a symbol of the Trinity . He was also known as the "Eggepater" in the Paderborn region. Kleinschmidt published a cheerful report on the Paderborn “Domtauben” and “Domhasen” from January 27, 1926 in the Westfälisches Volksblatt (Paderborn), which was once not about “his” topic Trinity an “Ode, sung on our rabbit window” from 1916, which was written by the regional economist Joseph Freusberg (1847–1926) from Geseke:

“The stone image shows three hares. / They run fast, they jump wildly. / They hold the spoons high. / Every hare has two. However / if you look for the full number of spoons, / despite the hardship and pain you will find only three instead of six. / And yet every rabbit wears two. / Now look what rubbish the artist was, / who gave everyone a pair of spoons. / Yes, you only know how he thought it up, / then he has already made you happy. "

literature

  • Erhard Ueckermann : The rabbit symbol on Paderborn Cathedral, in Hardehausen Monastery, in the St. Paulus Cathedral in Münster and in the Haina Monastery Church . In: Zeitschrift für Jagdwissenschaft 41 (1995), pp. 285-291.
  • Anna Filigenzi : The three hares. In: Susan Whitfield (Ed.), The Silk Road. Landscapes and History. Darmstadt 2019, p. 146.
  • Wolfgang Stüken : Why Paderborn's Drei Hasen could celebrate a big anniversary in 2020. In: Die Warte , home magazine for the Paderborn and Höxter districts, No. 185 / Easter 2020 (first part of a three-rabbit trilogy), pp. 27–32.
  • Wolfgang Stüken : "Message from solidarity, community and movement". Part 2 of the three rabbits trilogy: The Paderborn symbol as a trademark. In: Die Warte , home magazine for the Paderborn and Höxter districts, No. 186 / Summer 2020, pp. 34–37.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ z. B. Head of Corleck
  2. ↑ 1st cover , 2nd cover , accessed on November 14, 2016.
  3. ^ Hans Minder: Lauperswil community. Minder, Lauperswil, 2002.
  4. ↑ Karl Hillenbrand, Bernd Schweßinger (eds.): Peace and Joy - On the way with Bishop Paul-Werner Scheele , 2nd edition, Würzburg 2003, p. 115.
  5. ↑ P. Beda Kleinschmidt: After the cathedral pigeons again the cathedral hares. The rabbits in poetry , in: Westfälisches Volksblatt of January 27, 1926 / Second sheet; Scan of the edition of January 27, 1926 on zeitpunkt.nrw .

Web links

Commons : Drei Hasen  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files