Heinrich the Lion Monument
The Heinrich-der-Löwe monument on the north side of Lübeck Cathedral is one of originally 15 copies of the Braunschweig Lion that have been made since 1873. This bronze sculpture , made in 1975 , is the second such sculpture to be erected in Lübeck . The first was made from artificial basalt in 1930 . It was probably lost in the air raid on Lübeck on March 29, 1942 during World War II .
background
Duke Heinrich the Lion is of historical importance for Lübeck. For the city's foundation, instead of the flat and swampy Alt-Lübeck on the Schwartau, he first pointed to the wooded hill between Trave and Wakenitz for the choice of the site and founded it there for the second time in 1159. He also laid the foundation stone of the cathedral as a cathedral in place of an older wooden church in 1173 . He also stood up for the revitalization of the port of Lübeck .
The lion statue commemorates the Duke of Guelph , who donated the cathedral in 1173. Just as the Brunswick Cathedral , the Ratzeburg Cathedral and the Schwerin Cathedral were donated by Heinrich the Lion, the Lübeck Cathedral is also known as the "Löwendom". In memory of the founder, copies of his symbol of power, the Brunswick lion , were erected in close proximity to these Romanesque church buildings from the end of the 19th century . The original of the lion statue was erected between 1163 and 1181 in front of the Duke's residence in Braunschweig , Dankwarderode Castle , and has been in the castle since 1980 to protect it from harmful environmental influences.
A copy was erected here on the occasion of the 800th birthday of the second city founder of Lübeck.
Brunswick lion
1930
statue
The monument, which was made about ¾ the size of the monument in front of the Braunschweig Dankwarderode Castle as a free copy, consisted in its figure of gray artificial basalt and in the pedestal of artificial Odenwald sandstone . The image of the lion was carved out of the full block by the sculptor Otto Mantzel , so it is to be regarded as an original work piece.
The museum was also hit during the air raid on March 29, 1942 . When an air mine interrupted the extinguishing work on the museum, the fire spread to the cathedral. The sculpture in the cathedral courtyard was probably also destroyed here.
inauguration
On the afternoon of October 9, 1930, the leading circles of Lübeck met in the basement of the Museum am Dom on the south side of the cathedral to celebrate the inauguration of the monument. Museum director Willibald Leo von Lütgendorff , at whose instigation the replica was created by Otto Mantzel, addressed the importance of the city's second founder in a lengthy address. The participants then went into the courtyard of the museum. There von Lütgendorff unveiled the statue and handed it over to Adolf Ihde , who, as director of the Society for the Promotion of Charitable Activities, represented the sponsor of the museum. Ihde expressed his joy at the "sensible and correct" idea of having a memorial to the founder of Lübeck erected here. In further embodiments, the speaker pointed out that just the work of Henry the Lion, the Germans have preserved. The speaker took over the memorial for the "non-profit" and asked that the same home district that created this memorial should continue to work in the museum administration. She would have created this monument from saved funds from the administration. The ceremony ended with thanks to the performing artist.
It was noted with satisfaction in public that here, as it was said, after a long time a really down-to-earth work had been created by a local artist and at the same time a debt of thanks for the founder of Lübeck had been honored after many centuries.
1975
Only 30 years after the end of the war and after the first memorial had been completely forgotten was a bronze copy made by the Elfriede Dräger Memorial Foundation , part of the Dräger Foundation , in 1975 on the other, the north side of the cathedral in the cathedral cemetery of the Brunswick Lion .
The base was also reconstructed based on the example. The font design for the panels comes from Peter Thienhaus . On them are the inscriptions:
- HENRICVS / LEO / DIE GRATIA DVX / BAWARIAE ET SAXONIAE / AD SEMPITERNAM ET ORIGINS / ET NOMINIS SVI / MEMORIAM / BRVNSWICI / IN AVITO MAIORVM SVORVM PALATIO / ANNO AB INCARNATIONIS DOMINI / MCLXVM
and
- IN MEMORY OF / HEINRICH THE LION / DUKE OF BAVARIA AND SAXONY / * 1129 † 1195 / HE SET THE PAVER OF CHRISTIANITY IN OUR COUNTRY / VICELIN / IN OLDENBURG TO THE BISHOP / HE FOUNDED THE CITY IN 1159B. / HE RAISED LÜBECK UNDER BISHOP GEROLD IN 1160 TO THE NEW SEAT OF THE BISTUCE / AND STARTED THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE DOMES IN 1173 / THIS REPRODUCTION OF THE MONUMENT ERECTED IN 1166 IN BRAUNSCHWEIG / WAS ESTABLISHED BY THE STIFTUNG IN 1975
The model was designed by the architect Dankwart Gerlach ( BDA ) and executed by Michael Schlucz from Hanover. Scientific advice was provided by Karl Jordan ( University of Kiel ), Werner Neugebauer and Dankwart Gerlach.
The technical work was carried out by the fine art foundry Hermann Noack ( Berlin-Friedenau ), the metal foundry S. Benedict (Lübeck), the master stonemason Erich Peters & Sohn (Braunschweig) and the construction company Behrens & Sohn (Lübeck).
literature
- In memory of Duke Heinrich the Lion , a flyer made in the autumn of 1975 for the installation of the Lübeck monument .
- Monument to Heinrich the Lion, the second founder of Lübeck. In: Lübeck advertisements . Born 1930, No. 237, edition October 10, 1930.
- Timeline. In: Father-city sheets. Born 1930/31, No. 2, edition October 25, 1930, p. 8.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Peter Seiler: The Braunschweiger Burglöwe - Securing evidence in search of artistic models. In: Luckhardt, Niehoff (Hrsg.): Heinrich the lion and his time. Volume 2 (Essays), p. 244.
- ↑ Note: In contemporary literature it is mentioned without the addition of -Leinburg .
- ^ Dräger Foundation
Coordinates: 53 ° 51 ′ 41.2 ″ N , 10 ° 41 ′ 7 ″ E