Nordheimer Madonna
The Nordheim Madonna is a late Gothic stone sculpture . It was named after its location in Nordheim am Main in the Lower Franconian district of Kitzingen . Today than in the Nordheimer main street house figure attached Madonna may be one of the forerunners of the so-called Soft Style are considered.
history
The story of the Nordheim Madonna can only be roughly traced. The connection to the royal court of King Charles IV , who later rose to become Roman-German Emperor, is secured . Karl sponsored the election of Würzburg bishop Albrecht II von Hohenlohe , who in turn supported the monarch with the establishment of a land bridge between the original territory of the king in today's Luxembourg and the new royal seat of Prague .
Charles IV began to settle artists from France in the Bohemian metropolis , who also imported a type of Madonna that was already widespread in France. Perhaps Charles IV sent a French artist to Würzburg to create representative sculptures here and thus reward the prince-bishop for his services. Together with the Nordheimer Madonna , the so-called Ursuline Madonna was probably created around 1340 in the church of this order in Würzburg.
The artistically superior Madonna was perhaps initially installed in the Würzburg Cathedral and also served cultic purposes here. Its importance is also underlined by some copies that were made in various places in the bishopric. In Güntersleben , in the Abbey of Oberzell and at a house on Käppele , today in the Museum für Franken , attempts were made to imitate the artist who was probably closely connected with the Prague Madonna in St. Vitus Cathedral and the establishment of the so-called soft style.
In the course of the baroque transformation of the Würzburg churches, which began in the 17th century, the late Gothic Madonnas, which were regarded as less modern, were sold to various locations in the monastery . Similar to the Lauber Madonna , whose history can be fully traced, the Madonna came from the cathedral to Nordheim am Main. Perhaps the Knoblach family who had the coat of arms tried to acquire it. The purchase of the work of art by the Nordheim village lord, the Schwarzach monastery, is less likely .
The Madonna was probably already on display as a house Madonna at the time of acquisition, as it does not appear in the inventory of the Nordheim Laurentius Church. The late Gothic Madonna was given a baroque architectural frame. The house at Hauptstrasse 28, originally house number 46, remained in the hands of the Knoblach family until the first half of the 19th century. In the course of time the Madonna underwent some changes and is now threatened with destruction by environmental influences.
description
The Madonna is on the corner of the house at Hauptstraße 28 in the old town of Nordheim am Main. It was made of sandstone and was placed in a baroque architectural setting. The Madonna is about 1.60 m high and was worked in full view. Originally the figure was polychrome , today it is presented in a modern, monochrome color. The Madonna corresponds to the image type of “Maria with the Child”, originally she held a scepter in her left hand , which is no longer there today.
Maria carries the child in her right arm and pushes her hips forward. At the same time, she bends her upper body unnaturally far back. So it is possible that Mary can look at the baby Jesus. A length of fabric from the veil that Maria wears covers the actually naked child. The veil also covers Mary's left shoulder and falls over the forearm. The hem of the veil can be seen on the right side of the figure. It lies in a narrow path around the upper body of the figure, draw folds in the fabric can be seen.
Maria is also dressed in a coat that extends down to the base of the sculpture. The distinction between a coat and a veil is difficult to make out today because the figure is framed in monochrome. Jesus is depicted as a small child, touching his lips with one finger and grasping Mary's veil with the other hand. The standing leg of the figure of Mary is set far back, the knee of the free leg pushes through the dress.
literature
- Hans Bauer: District of Kitzingen. An art and culture guide . Market wide 1993.
- Georg Dehio: Handbook of the German art monuments. Bavaria I: Franconia . Munich / Berlin 1999.
- Markus Hörsch: Prague-Paris-Würzburg. The Madonna in Nordheim am Main and its position in art history . In: Jiři Fajit, Markus Hörsch (Hrsg.): Artistic interactions in Central Europe (= Studia Jagellonica Lipsiensia Bd. 1) . Ostfildern 2006. pp. 27–51.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Hörsch, Markus: Paris-Prague-Würzburg . Pp. 41-43.
- ↑ While Hörsch (p. 39) mentions this year, Dehio (p. 675) assumes the time around 1380/1390.
- ^ Hörsch, Markus: Paris-Prague-Würzburg . P. 28.
- ^ Bauer, Hans: District of Kitzingen . P. 25.
- ^ Hörsch, Markus: Paris-Prague-Würzburg . P. 49 (Notes).
- ^ Hörsch, Markus: Paris-Prague-Würzburg . P. 30.
Coordinates: 49 ° 51 '36 " N , 10 ° 11' 4.8" E