Hirsauer Building School
The Hirsauer Bauschule is a building tradition of the German Romanesque assumed as a hypothesis , based on the Hirsau Reform , which Abbot Wilhelm von Hirsau introduced in the Hirsau Monastery in the second half of the 11th century . Later buildings would have been built deliberately in the shape of the Hirsau monastery church in order to express the spirit of the church and monastery reform structurally.
In 1091 the now ruinous abbey church of St. Peter and Paul was consecrated, which became a model for numerous monastery and collegiate churches in Germany. The latest example is Schwarzach Monastery in the municipality of Rheinmünster . Typical buildings of the Hirsauer Bauschule are also mentioned: the Minster in Schaffhausen , the Alpirsbach Monastery Church , the Paulinzella Monastery Church , the Hamersleben Monastery Church , the Thalbürgel Monastery Church , the Breitenau Monastery Church , the Peter and Paul Monastery Church on the Petersberg (Erfurt) .
requirements
St. Peter and Paul as a prototype of the Hirsau architectural school was a three-nave flat-roofed pillars - Basilica with transept and stepped choir . The crossing was separated by candle arches on all four sides opposite the nave, the transept arms and the choir, the easternmost yoke of the nave was separated by a similar arch as a small choir room (chorus minor). The main choir and the two side choirs in the line of the aisles were closed rectangular. The east wall of the main choir was divided into three altar niches, that of the side choirs into two altar niches. The east wall of the transept arms was enlarged on the east side by an apse. An atrium was attached to the west of the nave. The west facade was flanked by two towers. The abandonment of galleries and a crypt in the Hirsau Church are also considered typical elements that were later adopted. The strict and simple form of a columned basilica and the cautiously used, often barren architectural decoration with preference for cube capitals were seen as an expression of the strict ethos of the reformed monasteries, which possibly wanted to set themselves apart from magnificent imperial buildings like Speyer .
Whether and which role model the Cluny II Abbey Church had for Hirsau is a matter of dispute in research. These different theses are only partially a contradiction. The basis for the Cluniac architecture was the changed liturgy, which led to the formation of relay choirs. The choral service in Cluny was expanded more and more from the 10th century and was finally not limited to the entire day, but also included many hours of the night. The differentiated architecture of a relay choir offered space for the numerous priestly monks of the large monasteries and the erection of several altars so that the members of the order could comply with the liturgical regulations that only allowed one mass at one altar per day. In any case, Hirsau was much larger than Cluny II. Cluny II had a total length of around 60 meters, the nave in Hirsau was 110 meters long.
The monastery church in Limburg an der Haardt and the original buildings of the minster in Constance and Strasbourg are also cited as possible models for Hirsau , which would refer to more local traditions.
The Cluny II church, which was completed under the building of Abbot Majolus in 981, is the earliest known staggered choir. Thanks to the success of the Cluniac reform, the type quickly spread in France and also made it to Germany. The relay choir has been changed and developed over the decades.
Hirsauer nose
The small corner at the end of the shield arch of the capital is known as the Hirsau nose . These details can be found in many Romanesque monastery churches that go back to the Hirsau reform. The simple cube capital and the semicircular double shield arch, superimposed on each other, the chessboard ornament and the Hirsauer nose on the column capital at the intersection of the shield arch and cover plate are part of the Hirsauer form treasure trove. The Hirsau nose is an unmistakable hallmark of the Hirsau Peter and Paul Church.
Research history
The term building school cannot be applied to the Middle Ages in the same way as to the modern era. In the Romanesque period, one should not assume that pupils or students have learned the profession of architect at a university from a certain teacher or group of teachers and were thereby shaped in terms of a certain style. The term school is used in research on the history of architecture for the Middle Ages to show that certain prototypes, such as Cluny II and Hirsau in this case, influenced numerous other sacred buildings.
The term “Hirsauer Bauschule” was introduced into science by Georg Dehio in 1892. In his opinion, the lay brothers who were active in the building trade were responsible for the spread of the building type, whose model he sees in Burgundy. In 1919 Dehio specified his thoughts. He still sees St. Peter and Paul as "prototypes" of the Hirsau School, but now largely rules out the Burgundian influence and describes the church as "entirely German".
Dehio's theses were generally accepted until Manfred Eimer questioned them in 1937. He doubted a Hirsau building school that was spread by lay brothers, and described the architectural language associated with it as “common property” of the 11th century.
However, this extreme opinion did not prove capable of consensus. As early as 1939, Edgar Lehmann stated that there had of course been "reforming building activity" at Hirsau Monastery. The construction crews brought into play by Dehio, who moved from monastery to monastery to work there, he rejected.
The dissertation by Wolfbernhard Hoffmann , published in 1950, is still relevant today . Since then, the wandering Hirsauer construction crews have not been seriously discussed. However, no one doubts that Hirsau provided important impulses for sacred architecture.
Stefan Kummer summarizes the state of research in 2006 and concludes in a comprehensible way: “Of course, the succession that the Hirsau monastery churches found is not exhausted by repeating the Hirsau peculiarities. Rather, it can be observed that the church buildings of the monasteries that were founded by Hirsau or have been reformed, strive to reproduce essential features of the overall appearance, character and "spirit" of the Hirsau churches. Hirsau monks were certainly involved in the mediation. How this happened must of course remain open. ”The reception of the Hirsau abbey church was similar to that of Cluny II. Formative elements of this innovative sacred architecture were adopted within, but also outside of the religious community. but mostly associated with elements of the typical landscape architecture. There never was a national Hirsauer style or even an international Cluniac style.
In St. Peter and Paul you can see an alternative to the “Imperial Cathedral” in Speyer , which was begun around half a century earlier under the builders of the Salian dynasty. With regard to the investiture dispute , in which Wilhelm von Hirsau took a clear position, the architecture would then have a clear political message. When St. Peter and Paul began in 1082, Heinrich IV had the central nave in Speyer raised and spanned with huge groin vaults. Wilhelm von Hirsau's decision in favor of a flat ceiling not only conveys a completely different, box-like impression of the room, but also stands in a long tradition that can be traced back to the early Christian basilicas in Rome. Stefan Kummer says: "The choice of this type undoubtedly shows the striving for a spiritual and spiritual continuity, which was perhaps seen as endangered."
literature
- Ulrich Coenen: The Schwarzach Abbey Church as the latest example of the Hirsau Building School. In: Martin Walter (Ed.): Münster and Schwarzach Monastery - History, Architecture and Present Special publication of the Rastatt District Archives, Volume 12, Rastatt 2016, pp. 163–182.
- Georg Dehio: Gustav von Bezold, Die kirchliche Baukunst des Abendlandes Volume 1, Stuttgart 1892.
- Georg Dehio: History of German Art. Volume 1, Berlin 1919.
- Manfred Eimer: About the so-called Hirsauer Building School. In: Leaves for Württemberg Church History Volume 41, 1937, pp. 1–56.
- Wolfbernhard Hoffmann: Hirsau and the "Hirsauer Bauschule". Munich 1950.
- Edgar Lehmann: German high Romanesque architecture. In: Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte Volume 8, 1939, pp. 223–227.
- Stefan Kummer: Hirsau Monastery and the so-called Hirsau Building School. In: Canossa 1077 - Shock of the World , Paderborn 2006, pp. 359-370.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Peter Kurmann: On the sacred architecture of Swabia in the High Middle Ages: Romanesque or ›more Romano‹? Lectures and research (Constance Working Group for Medieval History) 52: 9-23. doi : 10.11588 / vuf.2001.0.17401
- ↑ Ulrich Coenen: The Schwarzach Abbey Church as the latest example of the Hirsau building school. In: Martin Walter (Ed.): Münster and Schwarzach Monastery - History, Architecture and Present = special publication by the Rastatt District Archive, Volume 12, Rastatt 2016, pp. 163–182.
- ^ Ehrenfried Kluckert: Romanesque in Baden-Württemberg: Byzantine image patterns, Hirsau school, monsters and demons, saints and monks, Staufer and Zähringer, town planning, castle typology, architectural style. Donzelli-Kluckert 2000, pp. 60f
- ^ Coenen, p. 170
- ↑ Georg Dehio, Gustav von Bezold, Die kirchliche Baukunst des Abendlandes, Vol. 1, Stuttgart 1892.
- ^ Georg Dehio, History of German Art, Vol. 1, Berlin 1919.
- ↑ Manfred Eimer, About the so-called Hirsauer Bauschule. In: Blätter für Wuerttemberg Church History 41 (1937), pp. 1–56.
- ^ Edgar Lehmann, German High Romanesque Architecture. In: Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte 8 (1939), pp. 223–227.
- ↑ Wolfbernhard Hoffmann, Hirsau and the "Hirsauer Bauschule", Munich 1950.
- ↑ Stefan Kummer, Hirsau Monastery and the so-called Hirsau Building School. In: Canossa 1077 - Shock of the World, Paderborn 2006, p. 366.
- ^ Coenen, pp. 171.
- ^ Coenen, p. 171, Edgar Lehmann, On the Significance of the Investiture Controversy for German High Romanesque Architecture. In: Zeitschrift des Deutschen Verein für Kunstwissenschaft 7 (1940), pp. 75–88.
- ^ Kummer, p. 368.