Simon Hüttel

Simon Hüttel , also Symon Hyttel (* 1530 in Trautenau ; † around 1601 ) was a Bohemian painter, cartographer , geodesist and chronicler .

Life

Hüttel learned the painting trade. On January 10, 1552, he married the bourgeois daughter Sabina Hrüdel, with whom he moved into his newly built house in Trautenau on October 25, 1553. In addition to handicraft work, Hüttel was also entrusted with artistic work, such as the window design in the new Jemnik Castle and the colored decoration of the choirs and the sermon chair of the town church in Trautenau, including the production of epitaphs , because of his artistry . In 1581, Hüttel carried out the order to overpaint the Passion depiction from 1477 in the Trautenau Church, although his clients were not very generous. Since he only received five thalers as wages for four weeks of work, he noted in his chronicle that his piety was worth the loss of twelve thalers to him.

At the same time, Hüttel was committed to the rights of citizenship of the town pledged to Christoph von Gendorf . In 1573 he was elected to the council and the following year he was elected mayor of his hometown. However, the associated tasks restricted his scientific intentions too much, so that he no longer made himself available for a second electoral term.

The focus of his interests was the research of the history of Trautenau and the surrounding areas as well as the exploration of the then undeveloped Giant Mountains .

Among other things, an expedition undertaken on November 2, 1558 with three companions to search for the old gold mine Goldgrube in Pfaffenwald has been handed down. During his tours, he meticulously noted the border signs attached to the rulers' borders. From July 6 to 15, 1564, Hüttel carried out a survey of the kingdom forest on behalf of the imperial commission . Together with mine separators from Kuttenberg, Hüttel worked on the leveling of the Giant Mountains in 1569 to explore possibilities for new water caves for timber rafting. The Riesenberg (Schneekoppe) was determined for the first time with an indication of the height (1920 cubits above the Riesengrund). In 1573 Hüttel was the recorder of the border inspection commission for the general overhaul of the Trautenau borders. He carried out further geodetic assignments in 1574 and 1577 in connection with the deforestation in the Kingdom Forest and Trautenauer Forest. On August 7th, 1577, Hüttel and eleven Trautenauers set out on a tour to explore the giant mountain.

His findings prompted Hüttel in 1578 to create a “memory book of the city of Trautenau”, which became his life's work. This city chronicle goes back to events from 1484, the original documents of which were lost in the great city fires of 1485 and 1583, and also tells stories that go back to the 12th century. His main work breaks off abruptly on December 4, 1601, so that it can be assumed that Hüttel must have been seriously ill or died at that time. At the same time, it can be assumed that his wife survived him, since he left no news of her death. He designed his epitaph while he was still alive.

On the initiative of Ludwig Schlesinger , Hüttels Stadtchronik von Trautenau was published in 1881 by the Prague publishing house of the Association for the History of Germans in Böhmen under the title Chronik der Stadt Trautenau: Simon Hüttels Chronik der Stadt Trautenau (1484-1601) .

Valuation of his work

Hüttel is the creator of the oldest picture map of the Giant Mountains. His Trautenau city chronicle is also of historical value as an authentic record of contemporary events.

In contrast, the studbook of Silber von Silberstein, created in 1593 for Adam I Silvar von Silberstein, which goes back to a progenitor Wolf von Ulstadt who was born in 999, is largely the writing of a family saga in which none of the people who appear before 1468 historically are detectable.

The Trautenau village chronicle, according to which the foundation of Trautenau and the villages is said to have taken place in the period between 1006 and 1029 and the construction of Berkstein Castle ( Silberstein ) is dated to 1056, are based on the existing documents that prove that the Colonization of the area did not take place until 200 years later, proved untenable.

Works

• Memory book of the city of Trautenau from 1484
• It is true that gantzen hriesen gepirgeß with all refier is 6. meyllen langk 4. meylen breytt dorinne 4. one hundred and 30. names of the mountains and water rivers described ( map of the giant mountains), 1576–1585
• Stam book of noble silver stamb of noble strict gentlemen Sielber von Sielberstein and Pilnikau, gentlemen on Wiltschitz and Schurtz , 1593
• Trautenau village chronicle (about the foundation of Trautenau and the neighboring villages)
• Collection of 23 sermons

Web links

• Ernst Kröhn: Simon Hüttel - The chronicler of the city of Trautenau
• Franz Schöbel: About Simon Hüttel and his works