Waltensburg Reformed Church

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Waltensburg Church (after restoration in 2009/10)

The reformed church in Waltensburg in the Surselva in the Swiss canton of Graubünden was built at the end of the 11th century. She is best known for the wall paintings by the Waltensburg master . His paintings are among the best early Gothic works in Switzerland.

history

The church of Waltensburg stands on a small plateau east of the Cadruvi village square and south of the deeply cut course of the Flem brook. It was built in the 11th century as a chapel on the site of a pre-Romanesque hall building with the inclusion of an existing tower. Below the pulpit, the natural rock protrudes above the floor level.

The church with its rectangular hall and square choir is consecrated to Saints Desiderius and Leodegar . Around 1330 it was extended to the west and connected to the defensive tower that had been converted into a bell tower.

Around 1450 the church was enlarged again, probably because the church at Jörgenberg Castle was closed. The late Gothic window in the choir was installed in 1510. The entrance to the sacristy was also built at that time . Various frescoes were cut as a result of the interventions. In 1711 the gallery and a new wooden ceiling were installed. Around the same time, the tower received its baroque onion-shaped dome. The Gothic font dates from the 17th century, the polygonal pulpit from 1672 and the inlaid church door from around 1750. The extensive renovation and restoration of the pictures from 1932 was largely financed by the wealthy citizen of Waltensburg, Anton Cadonau , of which a memorial stone next to the entrance commemorates.

Frescoes

The pictures come from four different eras:

  • Previous research has assumed that the paintings by the master of Waltensburg date from around 1330. However, recent research (cf. Rupp 2014 and 2015) suggests that the frescoes were only created after 1347/48, as they link the Jewish and the plague themes.
  • Around 1380 an unknown master painted a Margaret cycle on the western outer wall and the temptation of St. Anthony on the inner south wall .
  • Another unknown painter was commissioned in 1450/51 to paint the church that had just been enlarged. In the outgoing soft style, among other things, two strips of images from the life of Jesus and John the Baptist as well as apostles , saints, church fathers , a coronation of Mary and a mercy seat on the southern wall of the ship were created. Most of the Waltensburger's paintings were painted over. The same painter painted the east and part of the south wall of the St. Eusebius chapel in Breil / Brigels .
  • Around 1510, the picture of Christophorus on the outer wall was also created "al fresco" by an unknown hand.

After the Reformation in Waltensburg around 1527, the paintings were covered with a thin layer of lime, where they remained hidden for four centuries. They only reappeared during the church renovation in 1932. Most of it was restored by Karl Wilhelm Lüthy (1874–1937) from Bern. Individual images such as St. Anthony and the mercy seat were whitewashed again for denominational reasons. 1970–1977 the pictures were saved and restored again by Oskar Emmenegger from Zizers GR.

Paintings by the Waltensburg master

The paintings of the Waltensburger cover the whole north wall of the ship as well as parts of the north and south walls towards the corners. The big theme is the suffering of Christ. The figures stand out against a blue-black background and wear ocher-yellow, red and olive-green robes; Christ is always dressed in gray. On the inner north wall, a passion story with the Last Supper is depicted in two horizontal bands, alongside saints and apostles. On the southern outer wall there is a scene with the adoration of the kings and saints, the Archangel Michael , coats of arms and a crucifixion scene. These paintings only came to light in 1972.

  • Last supper

  • arrest

  • Last Supper and Crucifixion

  • crucifixion

Church organization

The Evangelical Reformed Church Graubünden leads Waltensburg, traditionally with Schnaus in Pastorationsgemeinschaft is, within the colloquium I above the forest .

literature

  • U. Caflisch: Art Guide Evangelical Church Waltensburg / Vuorz. Edited by the Waltensburg / Vuorz parish office and the Waltensburg / Vuorz-Andiast tourist office, no year given [1980; 2nd edition 1994]
  • Alfons Raimann: Gothic wall paintings in Graubünden. The works of the 14th century in the northern part of Graubünden and in the Engadine, with photos by Wolfgang Roelli. Desertina Verlag, Disentis 1983. pp. 31-89 and 408-425.
  • Ludmila Seifert, Leza Dosch: Art guide through Graubünden. Published by the Society for Swiss Art History. Scheidegger & Spiess, Zurich 2008. p. 206.
  • Willy Zeller: Art and culture in Graubünden. Paul Haupt Verlag, Bern 1993. p. 84.
  • Horst F. Rupp: A new look at the Waltensburg Passion Cycle. Bündner Monatsblatt 2/2014, pp. 175–197.
  • Horst F. Rupp: High art and hatred of Jews - A new look at old pictures. The Passion Cycle by the Waltensburg Master. In: Journal for Swiss Archeology and Art History, Volume 71/2014, Issue 2/3, pp. 161–186.
  • Horst F. Rupp: The Waltensburg master in his time. Kunstverlag Josef Fink and Verlag Bündner Monatsblatt, Lindenberg and Chur 2015. ISBN 978-3-89870-883-8 .
  • Horst F. Rupp: Master of Waltensburg. In: General Artists Dictionary (AKL). The visual arts of all time. Edited by Andreas Beyer , Bénèdicte Savoy and Wolf Tegethoff . Volume 88.De Gruyter, Munich / Berlin / New York 2015, pp. 525f.
  • Dieter Matti: Old Pictures - Newly Interpreted, Church Art in the Passland , Volume 3; Desertina, Chur 2012, ISBN 978-3-85637-370-2 , pp. 35-38

Web links

Commons : Reformierte Kirche Waltensburg  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ludmila Seifert, Leza Dosch: Art guide through Graubünden. Scheidegger & Spiess, Zurich 2008. p. 206.
  2. ^ Daniel Bolliger, Marc Antoni Nay: The Waltensburg / Vuorz Church and its wall paintings , Swiss Art Guide, 2017, ISBN 978-3-03797-293-9 .

Coordinates: 46 ° 46 '37.6 "  N , 9 ° 7' 3.6"  E ; CH1903:  728 222  /  182031