Holy Cross Church (Barenburg)

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Barenburg village church

The Holy Cross Church in Barenburg in the Diepholz district is part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hanover . According to local tradition, it was built on the walls of a chapel that the Count of Hoya had built over a medicinal spring around 1200.

History and description of the building

The two western bays of the high medieval hall church with a straight choir end date from the first half of the 13th century, the two choir bays probably from the end of the 14th century. The ribbed vaults were probably drawn in in the late 14th or 15th centuries. The vaults were painted in the second half of the 15th century or around 1500. Around 1734–49 the church was surrounded by buttresses. In 1952 the wooden tower was replaced by the new stone tower due to the widening of the main road. Until 1968 the basement of the tower served as a morgue.

Furnishing

In the choir is a Lutheran baroque altar from around 1730. It is decorated with the usual images for Lutheran altars: the predella shows the Last Supper , the middle image shows the crucifixion of Jesus and above it the resurrection is shown. The conclusion is a sun with rays.

The four evangelists are depicted on the pulpit of the baroque pulpit from 1668. On the upper edge you can read the inscription Verbum Domini manet in aeternum - The word of God remains in eternity , both an indication that “sola scriptura” applies to the pulpit; this means: Only the Holy Scriptures are to be interpreted in the pulpit. The sound cover is simple and has no figurative ornamentation. The names of the pens are under “Verbum Dominik”: Jobst von Weihe and Catharina von der Hude immortalized in gold letters.

The chalice-shaped baptismal font from 1484 bears the coat of arms of the Counts of Hoya. The shaft is younger. The Latin inscription translates into German: “A thousand four hundred fifty-eight years, Johann von Hoya had me built from his estates. He ruled his territory just as happily as he was a capable warrior. "

The brass chandelier was donated by Anna Decker in 1698.

The church impresses with its vault painting. This was discovered in 1897/98, uncovered by R. Herkenhoff and restored according to the ideas valid at the time, or repainted using found remains. In 1972 repair work was carried out.

Above the altarpiece , Christ as the judge of the world can be seen, surrounded by two angels blowing trumpets and Mary and John the Baptist as intercessors with God. To the right of the judge of the world you can see heaven in the form of a church and Peter inside the heavenly door. A group of naked elect is waiting in front of it. Behind them stands the Archangel Michael , who wields the sword of justice in his right hand above his head. Presumably the soul balance in his left hand, which can still be seen in the nearby church at Scholen , has been lost. To the left of the judge of the world, hell was either scratched out in the post-Reformation period or it was removed by the restorers and pastors at the end of the 19th century as too cruel or too “ papist ”. In any case, she is missing in Barenburg. Presumably it was believed that no Barenburger deserved hell. This may be pointed out by the angel who replaced hell, for he is holding a lily in his right hand, the symbol of purity.

Opposite is the Madonna of the Crescent Moon , surrounded by angels who hold in their hands some arma Christi such as the scourge column, the rod, the crown of thorns , the three nails, the cross, the lance and the hyssop stem .

In the next vault, the creation of Eve from the rib of Adam, the marriage of both by God the Father, the Fall and the expulsion from Paradise are shown from Genesis , and opposite them, as an antithesis, the Annunciation, the visit of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth , the Adoration of the Three Kings and the Flight into Egypt . All representations are framed by numerous tendrils and flowers.

The depiction of the Fall offers a special feature, because here the snake - contrary to the biblical report - offers Eve and Adam an apple each. Presumably this - probably unique - representation does not go back to the paintings from around 1500, but rather to the restoration by R. Herkenhoff around 1898.

The vault in front of the organ stage was adorned with ornamental tendrils in 1901 and also with representations in 1952. In the middle vaulted gusset, Jesus stands next to him with outstretched arms: “And nobody will tear them out of my hand” (John 10:28). In the southern vaulted quarter you can find St. Stephen in a deacon's robe with arms raised to the sky, surrounded by stones, the sky open above him. The writing tape proclaims his words: “I see the sky open.” In the southern vaulted quarter, the conversion of Saul is shown in front of the city wall of Damascus. On the tape that flutters around him, one reads: "Saul, why are you following me?" Two angels fly over the organ front. One holds a crown in his hand. Both hold a scroll in their hands on which Revelation 2,10b is quoted: "So I will give you the crown of life."

It is not clear whether the walls were also painted. In 1861 the windows and doors were enlarged and any paintings that still existed were probably destroyed.

Since the painting in Barenburg is similar to those in the churches in Scholen and Schwaförden , they probably come from the same workshop or from the same wandering monks.

literature

  • Hector Wilhelm Heinrich Mithoff: Art monuments and antiquities in Hanover . Volume 5: Duchies of Bremen and Verden with the Land Hadeln, Counties Hoya and Diepholz . Hanover 1878 p. 140, day. VI.
  • Heinrich Gate: Historical-geographical description of the counties Hoya and Diepholz with the views of all the churches and chapels of both counties. Edited from the sources . 2 vol. Nienburg 1901. vol. 1, p. 168
  • Rolf-Jürgen Grote, Kees van der Ploeg: Wall painting in Lower Saxony, Bremen and in Groningerland. Catalog volume, Hannover 2001, p. 14.
  • Gerd white, Karl Eichwalder, Georg Dehio , Ernst Gall: manual of the German art monuments. Bremen-Lower Saxony . Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich a. a. 1992, p. 188.
  • Working group “Chronik Barenburg”: Flecken Barenburg through the ages . Barenburg 1997.
  • Helmut Hark (Hrsg.): History of the patch and the parish of Barenburg . Sulingen 1970.

Web links

Coordinates: 52 ° 37 ′ 15.4 "  N , 8 ° 47 ′ 56.7"  E