Guardian Angel Cross in Unterlaa
The Guardian Angel Cross is a listed baroque statue in the 10th Viennese district of Favoriten , Unterlaa district . The column stands in the extension of Georg-Wiesmayer-Gasse to the south near the Vienna outer ring expressway S1 and is located on the former crossroads from Wieden to Maria Lanzendorf . On this way of the cross you can still see the Unterlaa station of the cross .
Construction and history
The Guardian Angel Cross is a round column made of Zogelsdorf stone with decorative ornaments in the form of acanthus leaves on the base of the sculpture, on the Way of the Cross to Maria Lanzendorf. The column is crowned by a guardian angel figure with a child. It was built by the married couple Johannes and Maria Orthner in 1948/49; In 1959 it was renovated. The (current) inscription on the base reads: "Go there to the place of grace. Erected by Johannes and Maria Orthner 1694" . The text used to be insignificantly different.
The column is supposed to commemorate the death of two brothers who froze to death on a pilgrimage to Maria Lanzendorf. According to tradition, they were found on a " Friday of Sorrows" , the Friday before Palm Sunday .
According to another legend, a poacher is said to have shot down the Guardian Angel's right arm. When fighting a hunter, he accidentally killed himself with a shot from his own rifle. Hunting is still practiced today in the area of Oberlaa , Unterlaa and Rothneusiedl , mainly for small game (hares, pheasants, partridges), but also for roe deer standing in the windbreaks .
With the construction of the S1, the statue was moved from the planned road north to its current position.
In fact, the Guardian Angel Cross was repeatedly damaged by vandalism, most recently in 2010. That may have been the reason that during the last renovation that was necessary so far, the Guardian Angel's right arm, which was previously stretched out in the direction of Maria Lanzendorf, was now supplemented so that it was more likely pointing to the sky. The picture on the right from 2009 shows the arm that was horizontal at the time.
literature
- Emil Schneeweis: On the religious folklore of the southern outskirts of Vienna: The wayside shrines, crosses and pillars of the Oberlaa and Unterlaa as well as Rothneusiedl. in: Österreichische Zeitschrift für Volkskunde, Volume XXV , self-published by the Verein für Volkskunde, Vienna 1971, p. 311 (picture), p. 322–323 (text). [1] .
- Werner Schubert : Favorites. Verlag Bezirksmuseum Favoriten , 1992; P. 176.
Web links
Coordinates: 48 ° 7 ′ 20.6 " N , 16 ° 24 ′ 42.1" E