Crypt of the Dukes of Pomerania-Wolgast
The crypt of the dukes of Pommern-Wolgast is a burial place for members of the Pomeranian griffin dukes . It is located in the St. Petri Church in Wolgast , the former residence of the Duchy of Pomerania-Wolgast .
investment
The crypt system in the Petri Church consists of three areas:
- The oldest tombs are believed to be under the church choir, they have not yet been archaeologically proven
- The accessible original crypt of the dukes' family
- The Greifenkapelle with the late family members
history
The burials of the ducal family were usually based on the place of death in the respective churches of the residences or the nearby monasteries as important burial sites. The place of death or burial of around 60 relatives is so far not known or not documented. In 1295 the dukes of Pomerania split up into the branches of Wolgast and Stettin among the brothers . This also shifted their burial sites to their various domains. This was repeated in 1372 for the Duchy of Pomerania- Wolgast, as there are divisions there, e.g. B. Stolp , Barth and Stargard initiated. Pomerania was then reunited for a short time (e.g. 1464 to 1532 and from 1625) and the residence was then in Stettin.
In the 15th century there was no crypt, so the documented burials of Wartislaw VIII († 1415), Wartislaw IX. († 1457), his wife Sophia († 1462) and Margaretha († 1489) - first wife Bogislaw X. probably made in the choir.
The crypt cellar was first built around 1560 and expanded in 1587. The crypt is 14 m long, consists of three rooms, the rear actual crypt chamber is 4.4 × 4.6 m in size. The entrance was originally designed as a vertical opening only to allow the coffins to be lowered. This was closed by a stone slab. This plate was pried open in 1688 by three grave robbers and the coffins broke open and robbed. Although the robbers, including the church sexton, were identified, the booty was never found; older documents only gave a vague list of the additions, which is preserved in the preserved log from 1688. During this robbery operation, the coffins were badly damaged as they were broken open with brutal force to get at the contents.
After the robbery, the crypt was walled up. According to an official specification, the crypt was opened and inspected every 100 years, i.e. in 1729 and 1829. The crypt was not affected by the devastating church fire in 1920, but it was decided to redesign the crypt entrance during the reconstruction in 1926. A staircase was set up with a horizontal door. The door is decorated with the Griffin coat of arms and is still there today. Due to the dilapidated condition of the coffins and the crypt system, they were only made accessible to the public on certain occasions. For Wolgast, 15 family members were buried by name until 1937. According to recent investigations, there are also two children known by name. However, only nine individual coffins and a wooden collective coffin for three remains of children were found. The latter were kept in an ammunition box (probably because of the zinc sheet lining). The small wooden coffin was made for them.
Restoration and redesign
In 1993, the renovation of the church began at a cost of over two million euros. In 1996, the main chamber was separated by installing a glass door and the crypt was opened for inspection. The condition of the chambers and especially the coffins was still worrying. From 1998 to 2000, damage mapping and an assessment of the crypt and especially the coffins were carried out by the dental technician Birgit Wachholz and master goldsmith Detlef Kadagies under the guidance of the metal restorer Wolfgang Hofmann, who later carried out the restoration of the coffins from 2002 to 2007. The reconstruction of the crypt and the coffins of the Pomeranian dukes, completed in 2007, was awarded a prize by the European Union for cultural heritage in the conservation category in 2010 . Due to the historical relevance of the duke's crypt, the St. Petri Church was recognized as a “monument of national standing” in early May 2011.
During the restoration, the crypt and the Greifenkapelle could only be visited in exceptional cases (e.g. Open Monument Day), as the restoration workshop was set up there and structural reconstructions of the two sites were carried out.
After the successful reconstruction of the coffins and the renovation of the crypt and the Greifenkapelle, it was decided that the coffins should no longer be stacked on top of one another as before, but should be displayed separately. So there are now the three women's coffins of Amalia († 1580) - daughter of Philipp I, Hedwig Maria († 1606) - daughter of Ernst Ludwig and Sophia Hedwig († 1631) - wife of Ernst Ludwig, the two children's coffins of Friedrich Casimir ( † 1644) and Katharina Eleonora († 1647) as well as the wooden collective coffin of the toddlers with the remains of Wartislaw († 1414), Christoph († 1449) and Georg († 1544) on knee-high stone benches in the crypt. The descent of the five children is not recorded in the family tables. In the Greifenkapelle are the coffins of Philip I († 1560), Maria († 1583) - wife of Philip I, Ernst Ludwig († 1592) and Philipp Julius († 1625).
The older coffins can be assigned to the Renaissance , they show clear lines, are simply made, have few edge ornaments. With a few exceptions, all labels and drawings are engraved . The exceptions are the cast coat of arms or name plates that are inserted in guides. The coffins of Philipp Julius and Sophia Hedwig and the two children's coffins of Friedrich and Katharina are splendid coffins from the Baroque era . They have cast and soldered ornaments and other components that are elaborate and also colored.
Epitaph and display board
To commemorate the dead in the burial places, the epitaph for Philip I from 1560 and the display board for the 300th year of Philipp Julius' death from 1925 with his sword and a piece of cloth as well as a memorial lettering are on display in the church. The plaque hangs on the north wall of the church.
The text in the showcase reads: “The sword of the last Duke of Pommern-Wolgast, Philipp Julius; † 6.2.1625, and a piece of his splendid robe. On the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the death camp of this pious and just prince, dedicated by the grateful community of Wolgast, in 1925. "
A specialty is the epitaph from 1560 donated by the duke's sons. It is 4 m high and 1.2 m wide in the Renaissance style, made of cast bronze and supplemented with some brass parts. The panel consists of the main field with the Latin dedication, two essays and the lower final part. In addition to the inscription, it contains the seven coats of arms for the domain of the deceased. The lower end contains the coat of arms of the maker of the epitaph Wolff Hilger from Freiberg. The epitaph hangs on a pillar in the nave. The epitaph was also restored by Hofmann until 2007.
literature
- Norbert Buske: The Petrikirche in Wolgast - pictures of church history. and Regina Scherping: The burials of the Wolgast dukes in the Church of St. Petri. In: 750 Years of the City of Wolgast 1257–2007. Published by the city of Wolgast, Wolgast 2007, pp. 48–55 and pp. 56–60.
- Martin Wehrmann: The burial places of the members of the Pomeranian ducal house. Szczecin, 1937.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Martin Wehrmann, The burial places of the members of the Pomeranian ducal house, Stettin, 1937, p. 117 ff
- ^ The crypt of the dukes of Pommern-Wolgast, Wolgaster Museumsschriften, booklet 4, Hoffmann-Druck, Wolgast 2000, p. 15ff
Web links
- Literature on the crypt of the dukes of Pomerania-Wolgast in the state bibliography MV
- Wolgast Church , website of the Protestant parish of St. Petri zu Wolgast
- St. Petri Church in Wolgast
Coordinates: 54 ° 3 ′ 13 ″ N , 13 ° 46 ′ 36 ″ E