Kefermarkt winged altar

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gothic winged altar

The Kefermarkt winged altar was created between 1490 and 1497 by a master of the Kefermarkt altar, who is no longer known by name, for the Kefermarkt parish church . Due to its high artistic quality and size, the Kefermarkt Altar can be counted among the most significant works of late Gothic carving and is one of the main attractions of the Mühlviertel market town of Kefermarkt near Freistadt .

history

The lord of the neighboring vineyard, Christoph von Zelking , made from 1470 to 1476 a new church building and gave a 1490 triptych commissioned whose financing he testamentary secured. He died the following year. To accommodate this altar, however, a new choir had to be built in 1491. The structure of this altar was changed several times over the years, so the rear design of the wings was lost. These were fixed in their current position in 1684. The predella is also missing .

restoration

After the wooden altar, which was coated with glue , was already infected by woodworms , it was saved between 1852 and 1855 on the initiative of Adalbert Stifter (who was also a curator ). On this occasion, however, some things were renewed and changed by the sculptors Johann and Josef Rint from the perspective of the 19th century. The result is controversial, especially the removal of the paint. Another restoration followed in 1896, this time at the suggestion of Andreas Reischek , a New Zealand researcher from Kefermarkt. Also in 1904 and 1916 to 1918. In 1929, the then new method of pest control by cyclone was used against woodworms . The last interventions date back to 1959, when the altar was cleaned and impregnated . The windows in the choir were re-glazed to protect the wood.

Structure and design

Shrine figures of the winged altar

The 13.5 m high and 6.3 m wide altar, one of the largest Gothic carvings in Europe, was made of limewood . In the middle part, the shrine of the altar, there are larger-than-life statues of the three saints Peter , Wolfgang and Christophorus . They are supported by richly decorated consoles and crowned by canopies . Scenes from the life of Mary are depicted on the two fixed wings . In conversation Enge Mary, who are at the bottom Saint Catherine and Saint Barbara shown, about the Saint Agnes , flanked by two prophets busts, and top of the Saint Helena . In the carefully executed details, no two figures wear the same clothing, and their devices are also exemplary.

In his novel Der Nachsommer , Adalbert Stifter describes the altar (there it is called "Kerberger Altar").

Detailed views

literature

  • Erwin Hainisch: Help save the Kefermarkt carved altar! Linz 1929, 5 pages ( digitized on digi.landesbibliothek.at; appeal for donations).
  • Karl Kaltwasser: The Kefermarkt Altarpiece. 44 pictures, some very detailed, with introductory text. Iron Hammer Publishing House. Karl Robert Langewiesche, Königstein im Taunus 1954.
  • Oskar Oberwalder: The gassing of the parish church in Kefermarkt and its Gothic carved altar. Vienna 1930, 26 pages ( digitized on digi.landesbibliothek.at).
  • Adalbert Stifter: About the carved high altar in the church at Kefermarkt. In: Yearbook of the Upper Austrian Museum Association. Year 13, Linz 1853, pp. 1–19 ( digitized on ZOBODAT ).
  • Lothar Schultes : The Master of the Kefermarkt Altarpiece. The results of the Linz symposium (= studies on the cultural history of Upper Austria, part 1). Linz 1993.
  • Otto Wutzel : The fate of the altar of Kefermarkt. In: Rudolf Lehr: Landes-Chronik Oberösterreich. Verlag Christian Brandstätter, Vienna 2004, p. 96ff.
  • Ulrike Krone-Balcke: The Kefermarkt Altar - its master and his workshop. Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich 1999 (also Univ. Diss., Munich 1995).

Web links

Commons : Kefermarkter winged altar  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Otto Wutzel: The fate of the altar of Kefermarkt. In: Landes-Chronik Oberösterreich, Linz 2004, p. 96ff. (History and restoration).
  2. ↑ Post-Summer - Chapter 33 online

Coordinates: 48 ° 26 ′ 39 ″  N , 14 ° 32 ′ 27 ″  E