Envious head

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Neidkopf in Waiblingen

When envy head are faces attached to walls , doors or gables of houses and other buildings are attached, respectively. The term comes from the Old High German word nid , which stands for hatred, anger or envy .

nature

To ward off evil , builders in Europe had grimaceous heads of animals, people or fabulous monsters made of stone or wood attached to doors. According to popular belief, the head of envy should ward off calamity and evil ( apotropaic act ). The evil forces and spirits should not envy the people in the buildings covered with them and should not turn them against the residents. There were envious heads from the size of the palm of the hand to the size of a head. Sometimes they reached a size of up to 1.50 m in stone form as a step to the house stairs. Heads of envy were particularly found on pillars and parts of the building facing west, as the demons were mainly suspected there.

The old Berliner Neidkopf

Alt-Berliner envy head from the early 18th century. From the Heiliggeiststraße  38

In the streets of old Berlin there was the Neidkopf  shown here at Heiligegeistgasse 38 until 1841. The purpose of the mounted over the front door what has been sandstone reliefs as evil and ugly woman face with snake hair and a protruded tongue is not yet clearly identified. There are several explanations, including a legend that was first known in 1831.

  • The legend ascribed a good deed to the ruler of that time, King Friedrich Wilhelm I. When he saw a goldsmith several times during his walks in his open workshop while his work was sluggishly progressing, he asked the craftsman why. He replied that he had to buy the precious metal in advance and then monetize the finished piece again, which would be difficult without firm orders. The king immediately commissioned the goldsmith to make a gold service for the royal court and was then convinced of the man's skill and diligence. Allegedly two women from the house opposite (Heiliggeiststrasse 12), the daughter and the wife of a colleague, observed the positive development of the trade and made envious faces. After the goldsmith was even able to build a new house as a result of financial help from the court, he had a stonemason hit the head of envy shown above and put it above the entrance as a mirror for the envious women.
  • According to the treasury register of the Berlin magistrate from the end of the 17th century, the goldsmith Johann Christian Lieberkühn, who immigrated from Quedlinburg , bought the property at Heiliggeiststrasse 38 for 2335 Thaler in 1719 and built a new house here. According to the documents mentioned, there was no other goldsmith across the street (Heiliggeiststrasse 12), but court counselor Bergius; House number 11 was owned by the king. Art historians also attribute the envious head attached to the house to the situation, because Lieberkühn was a purveyor to the court, quite wealthy and senior elder of the goldsmiths' guild . Previously, this office was held by Daniel Male the Younger , who was accused of poor administration and a lotter life, Lieberkühn is said to have pushed him out of office. So the head above the entrance could also perform a protective function from the envious and his friends.
  • A third explanation takes up the principal defense effect of a head of envy, because the goldsmith's workshop was not far from the Heilig-Geist-Hospital , which was visited by many sick people. The house entrance with the deterrent ornament should possibly protect the family from harm and disease.

The sculpture was already removed in 1841 and came to the Märkisches Museum Berlin much later ; it is included for the first time in the 1973 inventory. The former craftsman's house was replaced by new buildings in the same place in the 1960s.

More jealous Berliners

Kaak

First of all, there is the Kaak , which was originally attached to the court arbor of the old Berlin town hall . It is a human head with dog ears and a bird's body.

Over the portal of the noble palace of those of Blankenburg , another head of envy protected the residents.

Finally, in 1937, while renovating the masonry of the Ephraim-Palais , workers found a head of envy, which is on display in the Nikolaikirche .

Origins

According to the Hohenloh local researcher Herbert Schüßler, the custom probably goes back to Celtic origins, when enemy skulls were attached to the outer boundaries of the buildings in order to deter enemies. They were also considered a symbol of luck and were also placed on armor. It was believed that by exposing one's head one had power over the soul and spirit of the enemy. Without knowledge of this cult, the custom with stone heads was retained by the now Christianized people.

  • More examples from Germany

  • Neidkopf in Waiblingen-Beinstein

  • Neidkopf at the Palm Pharmacy in Schorndorf

  • Neidkopf at the portal of the former von Baumbach castle seat in Homberg (Efze)

  • Envy head on a facade in Einbeck

  • Envious heads in Bonlanden

See also

Web links

Commons : Neidkopf  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Neidkopf von Mömbris (May 2002) ( Memento from April 16, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ^ Märkische Forschungen , Volume 2, 1843, published by the Association for the History of the Mark Brandenburg ; quoted in Maritta Tkalec: Envy makes you ugly . In: Berliner Zeitung , February 25, 2019, p. 10.
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g Maritta Tkalec: Envy makes you ugly . In: Berliner Zeitung , February 25, 2019, p. 10.
  4. ↑ Riddles about Hohenloher Neidköpfe on nature-press.de .