Holy Cross Church (Stadtroda)

Holy Cross Church

Interior panorama

The organ

The Evangelical Lutheran Holy Cross Church is a listed church building in Stadtroda in the Saale-Holzland district ( Thuringia ). The church is the oldest building in the city. The community belongs to the Eisenberg parish in the Evangelical Church in Central Germany. The building was originally the parish church of Stadtroda, but lost its importance after the Reformation and the construction of the Salvator Church . The Holy Cross Church is used as a cemetery church. In the summer musical Vespers with the name KreuzKirchenMusik and other concerts are performed.

History and architecture

There are almost no records of the first church, a wooden building. It was probably founded around the time of the colonization of the former Slavic area. The year 1014 can be seen above the simple main portal of today's church. The oldest surviving part of the former Romanesque church from the second half of the 12th century is the three-storey choir tower , which stands on the east side. The chancel is located on the lower floor of the tower and is vaulted with two bays. The ribs in the style of the late Gothic rest on stone animal and human heads. The keystones show a lamb and a head of Christ. During the renovation in 1959, paintings were uncovered, they show old consecration crosses on the walls and ornamental plant paintings in the vault . The chancel is separated from the nave by a Romanesque triumphal arch without a warrior . The nave was built in a simple form around 1681, according to a name in the triumphal arch, the walls are divided by rectangular windows and one rectangular door each. A flat wooden ceiling rests on two posts. There is a simple gallery on the west and north sides . During the renovation from 1826 to 1827, the choir tower was raised by two floors in brick . The choir tower, which is provided with supporting pillars, is strongly drawn in, its walls are structured by windows from different eras.

Recent renovations

The last extensive renovation during the GDR era was carried out in 1963. Later on, the tower suffered static problems due to the formation of cracks , which had to be rectified. The leaky roof threatened moisture damage. With the help of urban development funding, the support group and funds from the city, the building was repainted in 2012 and covered with a new roof. Since 2013, the windows and doors, the color scheme of the interior and the restoration of the choir have been tackled.

Furnishing

Choir with figures of saints

Grave slab for Nicolaus Andreas Seidemann

• There are five carved figures in the chancel. Those of the apostles Peter and Paul come from the Renaissance period , those of the five female saints from the late Gothic period. They were stored in the attic until the first third of the twentieth century and then temporarily found their place in the town church . Of the female saints, only Elizabeth with the attributes of a jug and bread, Anna herself, and Mary Magdalene with an ointment box can be identified. The attributes of the other characters have been lost. All figures show slight traces of the former version . The faces are characteristic and the robes show good folds.
• There is evidence that there was no organ in the church until 1977, when a donation from a member of the congregation made it possible to build a small but beautiful organ. The instrument was placed on the west gallery by Schönefeld Orgelbau from Stadtilm .
• Outside there is a grave slab with reliefs on the south side , it was made for Nicolaus Andreas Seidemann, who died in 1690. The reliefs show a portrait of the deceased and the resurrection of Christ.
• The new font was erected in 1959.
• Since 2011, the tower has been crowned with a cross, two tower balls and a flag. Cross and flag have been refurbished, the balls have been remade. The copper sheet in the foot area was sealed with a lead sleeve. A glass bottle with documents from 1982 was found in the old tower button. The names of the members of the church brigade that covered the gable and the south side of the tower were published here.

literature

• Georg Dehio , Stephanie Eißing, Franz Jäger : Handbook of German art monuments. Thuringia . Deutscher Kunstverlag , Berlin / Munich 2003, ISBN 3-422-03095-6
• Helmut Weinhold: Churches around Stadtroda . Evangelische Verlagsanstalt (Ed.), Berlin 1980

Web links

Commons : Holy Cross Church  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Renovations
• history
• History of the church
• Notes on the current state of construction
• Abstract of the story

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Mentioned as the oldest building in the city
2. ^ Community membership
3. ↑ Current usage ( Memento of the original from May 24, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
4. ↑ Note on the year above the main portal
5. ↑ Keystones ( Memento of the original dated May 24, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
6. ↑ Note on the doors ( Memento of the original from May 24, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
7. ^ Helmut Weinhold Kirchen um Stadtroda Ed. Evangelische Verlagsanstalt GmbH Berlin, Druckhaus Weimar BT 1980 page 9
8. ^ Dehio, Georg , edited by Stephanie Eißling, Franz Jäger and other specialist colleagues: Handbuch der deutschen Kunstdenkmäler, Thuringia . Deutscher Kunstverlag , 2003 ISBN 3-422-03095-6 page 1182
9. ^ Dehio, Georg , edited by Stephanie Eißling, Franz Jäger and other specialist colleagues: Handbuch der deutschen Kunstdenkmäler, Thuringia . Deutscher Kunstverlag , 2003 ISBN 3-422-03095-6 page 1182
10. ↑ Description of the building damage
11. ↑ Church renovation
12. ^ Helmut Weinhold Kirchen um Stadtroda Ed. Evangelische Verlagsanstalt GmbH Berlin, Druckhaus Weimar BT 1980 page 9
13. ^ Helmut Weinhold Kirchen um Stadtroda Ed. Evangelische Verlagsanstalt GmbH Berlin, Druckhaus Weimar BT 1980 page 9
14. ^ Dehio, Georg , edited by Stephanie Eißling, Franz Jäger and other specialist colleagues: Handbuch der deutschen Kunstdenkmäler, Thuringia . Deutscher Kunstverlag , 2003 ISBN 3-422-03095-6 page 1182
15. ↑ Taufstein ( Memento of the original from March 12, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
16. ↑ New tower cross

Coordinates: 50 ° 51 ′ 18.6 "  N , 11 ° 43 ′ 34.8"  E