Holy Sepulcher Church (Bozen)
The Holy Sepulcher Church is a Roman Catholic church in the South Tyrolean capital Bolzano . Conceived as a calvary , it is located on the local mountain Virgl, south of the old town, in the formerly independent cadastral community of Zwölfmalgrei .
history
In the 17th century, returning pilgrims to Jerusalem , who had seen replicas of the Holy Sepulcher of Christ on the way , had a holy grave built in Bolzano with a small church above it. This was torn down and on July 8, 1683 the foundation stone for a new baroque church was laid. The plans come from the brothers Andrea Delai and Pietro Delai , the execution was carried out by Thomas Schlotterpeck. The building was finished after a year, after which plastering and stucco work was carried out inside. The church was consecrated on October 2, 1685 by Auxiliary Bishop Wilhelm von Vintler . The patronage was transferred here from the neighboring Vigilius Chapel under Weineck .
Emperor Joseph II had the church closed in 1786, which could only be reopened in 1827. During the Second World War the church and stations of the cross were damaged by bombs. The South Tyrolean Monuments Office renovated the complex, which has been a listed building since 1977 , in the 1980s.
The once much-visited Kalvarienberg is largely abandoned today. The unfavorable traffic situation contributes to this. The church is cut off from the city center by road and railroad tracks on the narrow piece of land between Eisack and the mountainside, and a motorway tunnel runs directly under the church.
From 2014 to 2016, the 7 station chapels on the Via Crucis to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher were completely restored, the head-high Baroque figures by Georg Mayr the Elder. Ä. from 1682 were reinstalled in the chapels and depict scenes from the Passion of Jesus Christ.
- Station: Jesus parting with Mary
- Station: Mount of Olives scene
- Station: Jesus in front of Kajaphas
- Station: Mocking scene
- Station: Flagellation scene
- Station: Crowning of Thorns
- Carrying the Cross
Building description
Seven chapels with stations of the cross lead from the now destroyed Loreto chapel on the Virglweg steeply up to the church, which is visible from afar on the western slope of the Virgl . Some of the path chapels with simple arched openings were rebuilt after the Second World War. The Way of the Cross ends at the Holy Sepulcher in the church; next to it is a replica of Golgotha with three crosses and the figures of Christ and the two thieves , below is a burial chamber with the body of Christ and the mourning Mother of God.
The church itself is a central building on an octagonal floor plan with a dome and lantern over the crossing . Access is from the north via a stone staircase and a rectangular portal with a blown gable, flanked by two windows. A small bell tower rises above the northern facade. The choir room in the south is just closing and houses the masonry Holy Sepulcher, whose entrance is in the east. Further portals on the east and west side of the church lead directly to the Holy Sepulcher, doors on the southern narrow sides of the cross arms to the sacristies behind.
Church interior
The dome frescoes inside by Gabriel Kessler and Johann Baptist Hueber depict scenes of the Passion , the Resurrection and the Ascension . The stucco work was mainly created by Carlo Conseglio . Life-size wooden figures on the balconies in wall niches, which illustrate the passion scenes, are striking and unusual. They come from the Kreuzweg chapels and were created in 1689 by Georg Mayr from Völs am Schlern .
chapel
In front of the church there is a chapel, the interior of which is designed as a grotto. Inside it is a remarkable statue of Christ from 1695, which serves as a fountain figure, with the water flowing from the heart of Christ into the fountain bowl.
literature
- Georg Schraffl: Art and History between Virgl and Haselburg. Bolzano 1994
Web links
- Entry in the monument browser on the website of the South Tyrolean Monuments Office
- Entry about the Holy Sepulcher Church (Bozen) on Artisti Italiani in Austria , a project of the University of Innsbruck
Coordinates: 46 ° 29 '22.4 " N , 11 ° 20' 54.2" E