Sacristy in St. Maria (Buxheim)
The sacristy , consecrated in 1516 , adjoins the priestly choir of the former Upper Swabian Carthusian Church of St. Maria in the northeast . The two-story rectangular building with three axes in depth and one axis in width with a gable roof is about 9.6 meters long and 6.1 meters wide. The sacristy on the ground floor is 5.36 meters high and was originally provided with a cross vault, which was later converted into a barrel vault with stitch caps . On the north and east sides there is an ogival window, the other windows have curved lintels.
The former monastery archive on the upper floor was converted into a celebration chapel in the 16th century , the ceiling of which consists of a groin vault in the north and a barrel vault in the south. The archive of the Kartausenmuseum is located there.
Frescoes
The vaulted ceiling is decorated with two frescoes by Johann Baptist Zimmermann from the period 1711 to 1712. The northern fresco shows the glorification of the name of God , the southern Jacob's dream of the ladder to heaven .
Glorification of the Name of God
The fresco Glorification of the Name of God is the north of the two sacristy frescos . The Hebrew personal name of God can be seen in the upper third . He stands in a triangle inscribed in a circle from which rays emanate in all directions. Held by a putti, a garland of flowers and putti heads is attached to the top in a semi-circle. In the lower half there are two large angels. The angel on the right, dressed in red tones, wields a censer as a sign of worship and glorification of the name of God. His gaze is directed upwards at the tetragram. The angel on the left, dressed in blue, gold and red and thus emphasized in color, also looks up and points to the name of God with his right hand. A special feature of this angel is that the painting merges with stucco at one point: the angel's left foot protrudes from the picture from the shin.
Jacob's dream of the ladder to heaven
On the right side of the picture, Jacob is shown asleep leaning against a rock. He wears a blue robe and a red cloak. Next to him lies a walking stick on the floor with a vessel tied to the upper third. Jakob has placed his right hand on his stomach, with his left he supports his head on the rock. The eyes are closed. Contrary to the biblical narrative, the painter deviates here largely from it. An angel clad in gold and red cloth can be seen lying above him on a white cloud. The left wing is spread out, the right one is covered by the red cloth that flutters far upwards. The angel's right hand points to his chest, the left, with an open hand, points to Jacob sleeping below. This angel does not appear in the Bible. The sky, which takes the picture above, is midnight blue with few clouds. The ladder to heaven begins to the left of Jakob . Johann Baptist Zimmermann painted this ladder as a twelve-step staircase. On the third and fourth levels, two angels come down. The wings of the angel on the left, clad in white, are spread wide. His left hand points up, the right hand down, at the end of the stairs. The second angel is shown right next to him. He is painted in a red robe with a blue cloth. His face looks at the angel running next to him. The angel's hands are facing forward with the palms, as if trying to catch a fall. Another angel follows them on the seventh and eighth steps. Due to the long distance, it is now much smaller than the two in front. The last angel is depicted on the penultimate step, which ends in a bright, circular light. The light symbolizes God. The angel is the only one who goes up the stairs. The stairs are bordered on the left by a palm tree with fruit and a deciduous tree. Two putti, which seem to be talking, can be seen under the palm tree. The one standing below wears a blue cloth, the one floating down from above has a red cloth around his loins.
Sacristy altar
The altar of the sacristy is on the north wall. It was created by Dominikus Zimmermann from 1711 to 1712. The altar substructure is a simple wooden table with a simple antependium . On the table is a silver-plated and gold-plated cross, flanked by two silver-plated candlesticks. The stucco marble altar structure has an altar sheet flanked by two stucco marble columns. Next to the stucco marble columns are two statues set in gold. The northern statue represents Gertrud von Helfta . She is holding an abbess's staff in her left hand and a book with a flaming heart and an arrow in it in her right hand. Her head, surrounded by a halo, is directed slightly upwards, her gaze goes beyond the viewer. The southern statue represents Mechthild von Hackeborn . She holds an abbess's staff in her right hand; the attributes in her left hand are lost. She used to carry a book with a dove and a flaming heart. Her head is surrounded by a crown of thorns and a halo.
The altar panel shows Archangel Michael and the fall of the angel . The archangel in the center in blue and white robe is depicted with wings spread wide. A red cloth is wrapped around his left shoulder and over his loins. In his right hand he holds a flaming sword and in his left a shield with a red cross. In the sky above him there are several putti and two armed angels on his sides. In the fall of hell below him, Lucifer falls into hell. He is painted in shades of red, has black wings and is dressed in a black loincloth. His gaze goes up and is directed to the Archangel Michael. His right hand points up, his left hand down. The right leg is angled back and the left is stretched out. The representation of Lucifer takes up the entire lower third of the picture. Other angels go with him to hell.
In the extract, God the Father is sitting on a cloud. He is dressed in a pastel blue robe, a red cloth swings over his body and blows far behind him into the sky. The globe can be seen in front of him, with several putti around him. The excerpt is flanked by two putti, which thematically belong to the altar sheet. The putti on the left carries a spear, the right a bundle of lightning bolts pointing diagonally downwards. With this you support Michael's fight against Lucifer and the apostate angels. The top of the altar is a putti head with rocailles decoration .
literature
- Wolfgang Braunfels (Ed.): Lexicon of Christian Iconography . tape 1-8 (1968-1976) . Herder Verlag, Freiburg im Breisgau a. a., ISBN 3-451-22568-9 .
- The Buxheimer choir stalls . Contributions to the building and art history of the former Reich Charterhouse in Buxheim and the restoration of the choir stalls. In: Michael Petzet (Ed.): Workbooks of the Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation . No. 66 . Munich 1994, ISBN 3-87490-569-1 .
- Tilmann Breuer: City and District of Memmingen . Bavarian art monuments. Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich 1959, p. 81-87 .
- Georg Dehio : Handbook of the German art monuments . Bavaria III: Swabia. Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich 1989, ISBN 3-422-03008-5 , p. 223-226 .
- Michael Müller SDB (Ed.): The odyssey of the Buxheim choir stalls has ended happily. The magnificent choir stalls have returned . Self-published, Buxheim 1980.
- Michael Müller SDB: Kartausenführer: Buxheim. Carthusian church with choir stalls, parish church, Anna chapel, monks cell, cloister and museum . Self-published, Buxheim 1982.
- Hugo Schnell, Uta Schedler: Lexicon of Wessobrunn artists and craftsmen . Schnell & Steiner, Munich 1988, ISBN 3-7954-0222-0 .
- Christina Thon: Johann Baptist Zimmermann as stucco . Schnell & Steiner, Munich 1977, ISBN 3-7954-0406-1 .
- Gisela Richter: Johann Baptist Zimmermann as a fresco artist. The early work . Tuduv-Verl.-Ges., Munich 1984, ISBN 3-88073-145-4 .
- Günther Bayer: The Sichelbein family of painters 1580–1758. Life pictures and works . Fink, Lindenberg 2003, ISBN 3-89870-142-5 .
- Isaac Oxoviensis: Elogia Mariana Ex Lytaniis Lauretanis Deprompta . Steudner, Augustae Vindelicorum 1700.
Web links
Individual evidence
[* X] The Buxheimer choir stalls . Contributions to the building and art history of the former Reich Charterhouse in Buxheim and the restoration of the choir stalls. In: Michael Petzet (Ed.): Workbooks of the Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation, 66 . Munich 1994, ISBN 3-87490-569-1 .
Coordinates: 47 ° 59 ′ 58.4 ″ N , 10 ° 8 ′ 2 ″ E