Siebenmännerstein

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Original of the Siebenmännerstein in the Hanover Historical Museum
Copy of the Siebenmännerstein on a buttress of the choir of the Aegidienkirche

The Siebenmännerstein , also the tombstone of the seven men or Spartan stone , is a cross stone at the Aegidienkirche in Hanover , which represents seven praying men. It is said to commemorate the legend of "Hanover's Spartans " who are said to have been burned in 1480 during an attack on the Döhrener tower and its tower. The Siebenmännerstein used to be one of the seven landmarks of Hanover that every wandering craftsperson should know.

description

The seven -man stone on the southern buttress of the choir of the ruins of the Aegidienkirche is shaped like a medallion - cross stone . The stone is 244 cm high, 58 cm wide and up to 5.5 cm deep. In the upper part, the medallion, it shows the crucifixion with Mary and John on both sides, below on the shaft the clover leaf , the coat of arms of the city of Hanover. In the lower, pedestal-like rectangular field, there are seven kneeling, praying men looking upwards - towards the crucifixion group - in a relief recess. Above them the three-line inscription can be read in incised Gothic minuscules :

gi. rikn. U.N. poor / s. lat. iu. dese. dot / mercy: MCCCCLXXX
(You rich and poor, have mercy on this death: 1480)

The originally free-standing stele was initially located on the outer wall of the old Lady Chapel in front of the Aegidientor , which was demolished in the 16th century as the city fortifications were being expanded. Arnold Nöldeke reports (referring to Christian Ulrich Grupen's Historia ecclesiastica ) that the stone was probably brought to the city in 1534 and placed in the Aegidienkirchhof. In the Chronologia Hannoverana (Göttinger Codex 274) it is noted that the stone was 1645 “as the revalin before s. Aegidien thore replied, in the city to s. Aegidien churches set and masonry ”. On the other hand, Arnold Nöldeke - and following him Sabine Wehking - speaks of the fact that the stone was only installed in the church in 1654. The stone that is now on the outer wall of the choir of the church ruin is a copy; the original has been kept in the Hanover Historical Museum since the end of the 20th century .

Saga and criticism

The legend surrounding this stone relates to the seven defenders of the Döhrener Tower , a guard tower of the Hanoverian Landwehr in the south of the city. When the Guelph Duke Heinrich von Wolfenbüttel attacked the city in 1486, the guards in the tower are said to have been “smacked to death”. The attackers set up stakes around the tower and burned it and its crew. This is how the Hanoverian writer Wilhelm Blumenhagen describes it in detail in his story “Hanover's Spartans” (1829).

Blumenhagen's portrayal cannot be reconciled with historical events. While Heinrich's attack - as evidenced by the Red City Book - did not take place until 1490, the year MCCCCLXXX (1480) can be found on the inscription on the stone. Therefore, “dese dot” (this death) of the inscription cannot be related to the death of the “Spartans”, but to Jesus Christ (at the crucifixion). According to Sabine Wehking, the number of the men depicted on the stone “happens to be” seven.

Sage text

  • Wilhelm Blumenhagen : Hanover's Spartans. A historical narrative. In: Orphea. Paperback. Vol. 6, 1829, pp. 1-100 (digitized version ) . Reprint: Edited by Karl Henniger on behalf of the youth publications committee of the Hanover teachers' association. Images by FH Koken . Sponholtz, Hanover 1926.

literature

Web links

Commons : Siebenmännerstein  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
  • Sabine Wehking : No. 29: City of Hanover, Historical Museum, devotional picture. 1480. [= Siebenmännerstein]. In: Insschriften.net , urn : nbn: de: 0238-di036g006k0002902 (digital edition of the article for the inscriptions of the city of Hanover , with a picture of the original).

supporting documents

  1. ^ Franz Rudolf Zankl: The seven-men-stone as a museum piece . In: home country. Volume 1986, pp. 114-116, here p. 114.
  2. ↑ a b c Sabine Wehking: No. 29: City of Hanover, Historical Museum, devotional picture. 1480. [= Siebenmännerstein]. In: Insschriften.net , urn : nbn: de: 0238-di036g006k0002902 .
  3. ^ Arnold Nöldeke: The art monuments of the province of Hanover. Part 1: Hanover district. Issues 1 and 2: City of Hanover. Schulze, Hannover 1932, p. 125.
  4. ^ Arnold Nöldeke: The art monuments of the province of Hanover. Part 1: Hanover district. Issues 1 and 2: City of Hanover. Schulze, Hannover 1932, p. 213 . On the other hand, it says ibid., P. 125 , the stone stood outside the city until 1654 and only then came into the Aegidienkirche.
  5. ↑ Quoted from Karljosef Kreter: Urban history culture and historiography. The image of the city of Hanover in the mirror of its history from the beginnings to the loss of urban autonomy. Dissertation, University of Hanover, 1996, p. 341 (PDF). A version of Duke Heinrich's attack is also mentioned here.

Coordinates: 52 ° 22 ′ 9.5 ″  N , 9 ° 44 ′ 22.5 ″  E