Saint Sebastian Church (Mahlsdorf)
The Sankt Sebastian Church is the Protestant church in the village of Mahlsdorf in the Altmark . It is consecrated to Saint Sebastian and is one of the Romanesque fortified churches . The community belongs to the parish of Apenburg in the parish of Salzwedel of the Evangelical Church in Central Germany .
history
In prehistoric times, a menhir complex was built on the site of the later church , of which three stones are still preserved today.
The church was built around 1220 in the Romanesque style on the site of a pagan place of worship. The orientation of the building refers to this place of worship. Some cult stones have been preserved to this day. One is on the southeast corner of the church building. It is assumed that this location of the church was deliberately chosen in order to use the religious tradition of the place and at the same time to promote the displacement of the original religion by the Christian faith.
The church was built by builders from the northern Harz region who had come to Altmark together with missionaries from Halberstadt .
After the First World War, a war memorial was erected on the north side of the church , on which today the Mahlsdorf who died in the world wars is commemorated.
In September 2003 a support group was founded for the church, which is dedicated to the preservation and use of the church.
architecture
The church, built in the Romanesque style from field stones, consists of the four clearly delimited parts tower , nave, choir and apse .
The church tower is designed as a transverse rectangular defense tower and is located on the western side of the church. Originally, the tower could only be reached via a ladder, which could be pulled in by the people fleeing there in case of danger.
The nave has an almost square plan, the apse formed a semicircle. There is a groin vault in the nave, choir and at the window of the apse .
Facility
The remainder of a late Gothic carved altar with a sacrament niche is located on the altar as an altarpiece . Here is a painting from the 17th century showing the four evangelists . The crucifix represents the remainder of a triumphal arch from the 2nd half of the 15th century. There is also a carved figure depicting Saint Sebastian, which was made around 1480.
The pulpit, the stalls and the west gallery are dated to 1694.
Murals shimmer through under the current painting. A crucifixion group can be seen above the entrance door . There are plans to secure these old paintings and expose them as far as possible.
Web links
literature
- Thomas Hartwig: All Altmark churches from A to Z . Elbe-Havel-Verlag, Havelberg 2012, ISBN 978-3-9814039-5-4 , p. 313 .
- Wilhelm Zahn : The Altmark village churches and their clergy in the Middle Ages . (Notes on 212 churches from Abbendorf to Ziethnitz). In: Annual reports of the Altmark Association for Patriotic History . 34th Annual Report, 1907, p. 66 , 123. Mahlsdorf ( altmark-geschichte.de [PDF]).
Coordinates: 52 ° 47 '36.9 " N , 11 ° 13' 55.9" E
