Michaelsbrunnen (Mettingen)
The Michaelsbrunnen , also Michaelsdenkmal , is a monument designed as a fountain on the market square of Mettingen , which was inaugurated in 1902.
The fountain with the statue of the Archangel Michael in front of the north portal of the parish church of St. Agatha stands exactly where the high altar of the old Catholic church used to be. As a memorial, it not only reminds of a consecrated place in the place, but also of two important dates in Mettinger's history. It is also a war memorial , as the names of those who died in Mettinger in the German Wars of Unification in 1864 and 1870/71 are recorded on it. The entire facility is a listed building .
Description and construction history
The central element of the monument designed as a village fountain is the column with the statue of Archangel Michael. The base , column and capital were created by the sculptor W. Schiemann, Münster , from red Eifel sandstone. Two heads of dragon-like mythical creatures act as gargoyles through which the water of the nearby Köllbach flows. The two fountain basins made of local Ibbenbüren sandstone come from the stonemason Rumöller, Recke . The large collecting basin is much younger, it was only created during the redesign of the market square after 1962. For many years, however, the water supply was defective, which was remedied when the monument was renovated in 1988.
The statue of the archangel himself is a faithful replica of the original erected in 1902. It is a 2.05 meter high yellow-brown electroplating , made by the Galvanoplastischen Kunstanstalt Geislingen an der Steige . The depiction itself corresponds with the clothing inspired by the armor of Roman soldiers, the flaming sword and shield and the dragon at his feet, the classic iconography of this archangel in art. The Latin inscription in the center of the column
"St. Michael, Patronus Germaniae "
refers to the function of the Archangel Michael as "patron saint of the Germans". On the one hand, the memorial is intended to commemorate the earlier Mettinger St. Agatha Church from 1779, which was demolished in mid-1894 after the completion of the new parish church. In order to preserve them in the memory of the Mettingers, the builder of the new parish church, Pastor Heinrich Hüging, had the Michael monument erected on the site of the high altar of the old church in 1902. On it takes the inscription
"At the place of the former high altar"
Cover, which is located on the south side of the monument foot on the left. On the right side you can also read:
"In the year of the double anniversary in 1902."
This is an allusion to the two significant years of Mettinger local history 1702 and 1777. Because in 1902 it was exactly 200 years ago that the rule of the Orange ended in the Upper County of Lingen , to which Mettingen also belonged, and membership of the Kingdom of Prussia began . Mettingen's Catholics hoped that this would ease the religious laws. In fact, 75 years later, in 1777, Berlin gave them permission to build a small Catholic church. As a reminder of the 200th anniversary, it is also fitting that the Mettinger Marktplatz was originally called Friedrichs-Platz in honor of Frederick the Great .
With its historical intention, the Mettinger Michaelsdenkmal shows a certain relationship with the Prussian monument in the neighboring municipality of Ibbenbüren . This memorial, also made of red Eifel sandstone, was erected in 1902 to commemorate 200 years of membership in the Kingdom of Prussia.
In addition to memories of dates from Mettinger's local history, the Michaelsbrunnen is also intended as a war memorial - after all, St. Michael is also the patron saint of soldiers and warriors. On the front of the base is the Westphalian coat of arms, on the back there is an anchor, the former Mettinger coat of arms. In the middle, the names of those who died in the German-Danish War in 1864 and in the German-French War in 1870/71 from the parish of St. Agatha are immortalized.
Also carved into the base are the combative lines - again directed directly to the Archangel Michael:
Do not leave us in the last quarrel,
guide the soul to eternity,
help us wrestle,
conquer the enemy!
The Mettinger Michaelsbrunnen thus unites different levels of interpretation, which the viewer does not understand at first glance. However, they are all listed on the monument itself.
The entire well system is an "object of popular devotion" under monument protection after November 27, 1984 as an inventory number them. A 05 had been entered in the list of monuments of the municipality of Mettingen .
However, there has been another major change to the monument since then: the Michael figure, which had been significantly damaged over the years, was replaced by a bronze cast in 1988 on the occasion of the 900th anniversary of the Mettingen community. The replica was created by the artist Otto Breuing from Borghorst , the casting was done by the art foundry Anft, Drensteinfurt . The original sculpture has since been inside the St. Agatha Church. On the occasion of the consecration of the renewed monument, Pastor Johannes Sandhofe reminded of the importance of the Archangel Michael for the Christian faith. The image of Michael still calls for not to avoid the confrontation with all forces of evil:
"St. To venerate Michael means, not least, to sharpen one's view of the threat to the world and our salvation from the forces of calamity that are present everywhere in the world. Michael’s fight with the dragon and his clear victory give us great hope that we too will win. "
Environment of the monument
Since the Michaelsdenkmal was not enough for the Mettinger warrior association founded in 1871 as a “Auch-war memorial”, he had a new, “real” war memorial erected just a few meters east on the edge of the village pond. Its base consisted of boulders , the column was decorated with an eagle. This monument in turn gave way to a new memorial in 1935. Because it had become very ailing over time. In addition, the National Socialists needed a suitable space for their elevators and public events. To do this, a broad strip of the village pond was cut off. The new, two-meter-high, square monumental column, crowned by a copper oak wreath, was designed by Hubert Bendiek, who was born in Metting. The new war memorial was particularly reminiscent of the fallen soldiers of the First World War , but the builders also used panels from the previous memorial . When the village pond was filled in in 1968 and the square there was redesigned, this war memorial also disappeared. The plaques with the names of those who fell in World War I are now on a wall in the hall of the new cemetery.
The Michaelsdenkmal stands free on the market square today. That was not always so. Until around 1970, densely planted linden trees grew on the north side of St. Agatha Church , under which the monument gradually disappeared over time. When the roots of the trees lifted the stone slabs of the church square and turned them into "stumbling blocks", the church council had the linden trees felled. That happened quite suddenly, which found a very divided echo in the place.
However, the Michaelsbrunnen really came into its own on the now free market place. The parish of St. Agatha had the areas of the square belonging to it redesigned with exposed aggregate concrete slabs, parking lots and flower beds. In the course of the redevelopment of the site, the market square and the Markt street leading along it were largely given their present appearance at the beginning of the 1990s with cobblestones and traffic-calmed demolition. Only one constant has remained through the decades: the archangel figure is still looking at the now mighty plane tree that Leo Schneider planted in 1908 exactly opposite the Michaelsbrunnen. The tree has survived all changes in the marketplace so far.
Others
Occasionally, the Michaelbrunnen is still the site of commemorative events. After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the pupils of the three Mettinger elementary schools and their teachers took a star march to the memorial on September 14, 2001 and laid down pictures and posters, candles, crosses and flowers they had painted themselves. With this symbolic gesture they wanted to protest against the terrorist act of the Islamists.
Every now and then, jokers can also spill out at the fountain and pour detergent or other substances that create large soap bubbles into the water, so that the pool overflows.
literature
- Hubert Rickelmann : Mettingen through the ages . Second improved edition. Schöningh, Paderborn 1978, ISBN 3-506-77222-8 , p. 485.
- Dietlind Ellerich: Bronze Michael watches over the place of the high altar. The original figure of the famous monument had to be replaced . Part 3 of the series of treasures in Mettingen . In: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung from August 13, 2004 ( online version from August 13, 2004 in the Westline local archive)
- Johannes Sandhofe: Today the new Michael monument is consecrated. In place of the high altar - built in 1902 as a war memorial . In: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung from September 3, 1988
Web links
- The Michaelbrunnen in the list of monuments of the Steinfurt district
Individual evidence
- ↑ Dietlind Ellerich: Bronze Michael watches over the place of the high altar. The original figure of the famous monument had to be replaced . Part 3 of the series of treasures in Mettingen . In: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung from August 13, 2004
- ↑ Hubert Rickelmann: Mettingen through the ages . Second improved edition. Schöningh, Paderborn 1978, p. 485
- ↑ a b Der Michaelbrunnen ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in the list of monuments of the Steinfurt district
- ↑ a b c Johannes Sandhofe: Today the new Michael monument is dedicated. In place of the high altar - built in 1902 as a war memorial . In: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung from September 3, 1988
- ↑ Hubert Rickelmann: Mettingen through the ages . Second improved edition. Schöningh, Paderborn 1978, p. 65
- ↑ See the signature on the back of the still image
- ^ Josef Tombrink, Ludger Etgeton, Joachim Tombrink, Karl-Heinz Käller: Mettingen. People - houses - streets . Ibbenbürener Vereinsdruckerei, Ibbenbüren 1993, ISBN 3-921290-70-8 , pp. 51-54
- ^ A b Josef Tombrink, Ludger Etgeton, Joachim Tombrink, Karl-Heinz Käller: Mettingen. People - houses - streets . Ibbenbürener Vereinsdruckerei, Ibbenbüren 1993, ISBN 3-921290-70-8 , pp. 20-21.
- ↑ Karl-Heinz Käller: Mettingen - how have you changed. A journey through time in pictures . Ibbenbürener Vereindruckerei, Ibbenbüren 2002, ISBN 3-932959-26-4 , p. 52
- ^ Josef Tombrink, Ludger Etgeton, Joachim Tombrink, Karl-Heinz Käller: Mettingen. People - houses - streets . Ibbenbürener Vereindruckerei, Ibbenbüren 1993, ISBN 3-921290-70-8 , p. 20
- ↑ See also the report (solo picture) by Jan-Herm Janßen in the Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung from September 15, 2001
- ↑ Photo of such an action, for example NN: bubble bath at Michael-Brunnen in Mettingen . In: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung of September 28, 2009 (here quoted from the online version of September 27, 2009 in the daily newspaper for the Steinfurt district )
Coordinates: 52 ° 18 ′ 55.1 " N , 7 ° 46 ′ 45" E