Pretiosa
The pretiosa ( Latin pretiosus 'precious' ) is bell 2 of the Cologne cathedral bells . It was cast by Christian Cloit and Heinrich Brodermann in Cologne in 1448 and is hung in the belfry of the south tower. The Pretiosa is considered to be one of the most beautiful-sounding bells ever and testifies to the very high standard of medieval bell-casting. Until the imperial bell was cast in 1875, it was the largest bell in the cathedral.
History and meaning
The pretiosa was hung in the still unfinished south tower of the cathedral - after the three kings bell created in 1418 . The casting was difficult and only succeeded the fourth time. Its inscription shows that it had three predecessors who, according to various sources, had roughly the same proportions. When these predecessors were cast can only be guessed. However, as the construction plan c from around 1300 shows, the tower opening for raising the bell was already the size required for the pretiosa . The first casting could very well have been made in the 14th century. This is also indicated by the capitals typical of the 14th century , while in the time of the Neuguss of 1448 the minuscule had been common in Cologne for half a century.
The bell was consecrated to the cathedral patron, Saint Peter , the Mother of God and the three wise men , whose grave is located in the cathedral according to a legend. Individual reliefs and the bell inscription indicate this patronage.
Against the background that the pretiosa has been calling believers to worship for more than five hundred years, it can be said that this bell represents a piece of understandable and audible church and world history. When it was made, it was the largest ringing bell in the Christian West.
The younger sister of the Pretiosa is the Speciosa, cast in 1449 .
Data
Musical
All notes in 16ths of a semitone .
| Chime | undertone | Prim | third | Quint |
Decay duration (undertone) |
decay running |
| g 0 +1 | F sharp −1 | g 0 +1 | b 0 +1 | d 1 −7 | 117 seconds | stands |
Technical
| Dimensions | lower diameter |
Knuckle thickness (due to wear) |
Rib construction | suspension |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| approx. 10500 kg | 2400 mm | 207 (195) mm | overweight | Steel yoke, embedded bell crown |
inscription
INSIGNIS STATUS ECCLESIE PROVIDUS SENATUS * CONCILII SANCTE PARILES UOTIS CIUITATIS * HUIUS CUM RELIQUIS GEMINI SEXUS DEO NOTIS * DENUO CONFLARI DANT ME SIMUL ET RENOUARI * SUM [M] E CHRISTIFERE U SINGULIS HORIS * TERQ [ue] REFORMATA QUATRO PRECIOSA UOCATA * MILLE QUADRINGENTIS QUADRAGENIS OCTO DONATIS * DUM SONO TRISTATUR DEMON XPS UENERATUR * BRODERMAN HEINRICH CLOIT CHRISTIAN HANT MADE ME * ◊ *
Flowers (here: *) and rosettes (here: ◊) are used as word and separator symbols.
Translation : The excellent state of the Church and the prudent Senate, uniting with the wishes of the council of this holy city, together with the rest of these two estates, which God distinguishes, made me again pour and renew, in honor of the bearer of Christ, Peter and the kings . At every hour I return the singing to the choirs, which was prevented. Reshaped three times, the fourth praised as “precious”. One thousand four hundred and forty-eight [years] were given. The devil is grieved when I sound but worships Christ. Heinrich Brodermann and Christian Cloit created me.
Ringing order
The pretiosa sounds at many high feasts of the church year in different ring combinations with the smaller bells of the main bell. It is placed in front of the other bells for five minutes both when the bell rings the evening before at 7:30 p.m. and at 9:40 a.m. for high or pontifical mass when the archbishop celebrates. This prelude is intended to ensure that the sound of the pretiosa can also be heard as a soloist, which is seldom seen anyway.
Alone it only announces the introduction or different of a canon or Cologne auxiliary bishop.
Fixed ringing dates
| Date / day | Time | occasion |
|---|---|---|
| December 26th | 09:40 | Feast of St. Stephen |
| Palm Sunday eve | 7:30 p.m. | Ring in Palm Sunday |
| Palm Sunday | 09:40 | Palm Sunday |
| Monday in Holy Week | 16:10 | Chrism Mass |
| Maundy Thursday | 19:40 | Last Supper on Maundy Thursday |
| Whit Monday | 09:40 | Whit Monday |
| Saturday after Pentecost | 7:30 p.m. | Heralding the solemnity of the Holy Trinity |
| Sunday after Pentecost | 09:40 | Solemnity of the Holy Trinity |
| 23rd June | 7:30 p.m. | Ringing in the solemn feast of the birth of John the Baptist |
| June 24th | 18:10 | Solemnity of the birth of John the Baptist |
| August 14th | 7:30 p.m. | Ringing in the feast of the Assumption of Mary |
| 15th of August | 18:10 | Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary |
| Christ the King eve | 7:30 p.m. | The celebration of Christ the King begins |
| Sunday Christ the King | 09:40 | Solemnity of Christ the King |
literature
- Jakob Schaeben: The cathedral bells and their chimes. In: Kölner Domblatt . Vol. 6/7, 1952, pp. 96-101.
- Wilhelm Kaltenbach: The cathedral bell Pretiosa from 1448. In: Kölner Domblatt. Vol. 31/32, 1970, pp. 71-80.
- Martin Seidler: The Cologne cathedral bells. = The Bells of the Cologne Cathedral. 2nd Edition. Verlag Kölner Dom, Cologne 2000, ISBN 3-922442-40-4 (documentation CD with extensive booklet).
- Manfred Huiskes: Cologne peals and bells of the Middle Ages. Part 3: The casting contract of the Pretiosa of 1448. In: Yearbook for bell- bearing . Vol. 17/18, 2005/2006, ISSN 0938-6998 , pp. 375-376.
- Jörg Poettgen: 700 years of bell casting in Cologne. Masters and workshops between 1100 and 1800 (= workbook of the Rhenish preservation of monuments. Vol. 61). Werner, Worms 2005, ISBN 3-88462-206-4 , p. 113 ff.
Individual evidence
- ↑ The pretiosa and the partial bells for the chrism mass (April 14, 2014 at 4:10 pm), g 0 –a 0 –h 0 –d 1 on YouTube .