St. Martin's Church (Berlin-Kaulsdorf)
| St. Martin's Church | |
|---|---|
.JPG) View from Giesestrasse |
|
| Construction year: | 1929 |
| Inauguration: | August 3, 1930 |
| Architect : |
Josef Bachem , Heinrich Horvatin |
| Client: | Parish of Kaulsdorf |
| Length: | 20 m |
| Location: | 52 ° 30 '53.64 " N , 13 ° 36' 13.08" E |
| Address: |
Berlin-Kaulsdorf , Giesestrasse Berlin , Germany |
| Purpose: | Catholic; church service |
| Local community: | Cathol. St. Martin's Parish |
| Website: | www.st-martin-kaulsdorf.de |
The Roman Catholic Church of St. Martin in the Berlin district of Kaulsdorf in the Marzahn-Hellersdorf district was planned by the architects Josef Bachem and Heinrich Horvatin and implemented in the New Objectivity style in 1929/1930 . It is a listed building and is located at Giesestraße 47.
Building history
The Catholic community developed in Kaulsdorf / Mahlsdorf from 1910 , and the curate was established here in 1925 . In order to be able to build their own house of worship, the property of a former excursion restaurant was bought and donations were raised. In 1928, when the designs from the Bachem / Horvatin architectural office were available, the curate was given the name of St. Martin .
The architects designed a clear, ornamentless structure based on Romanesque basilicas . Between July 7, 1929 ( laying of the foundation stone ) and August 3, 1930 ( church consecration ), a rectangular, 20-meter-long nave with a transverse block-like tower was built from unplastered clinker bricks , which is vertically divided by a narrow window slot. The vertical division of the wall symbolizes how Saint Martin shared his cloak with a beggar. Four rows of round windows next to the longitudinal slot adorn the tower gable and let daylight into the stairwell. The two uppermost windows are the sound openings for the bells and have special grille decorations. The vertical row of windows ends in a protruding console that supports the modern bronze cross.
The entrance area is designed like a pedestal and is delimited on both sides by two cylindrical round buildings that house chapels inside. The sacristy and rectory were added to the northeast side of the nave .
In the Second World War the parish hall was destroyed, the church building with the rectory and the building ("St. Martinsheim") badly damaged. The damage could be eliminated, the parish hall but was enttrümmert . In 1986 the building ensemble received a new parish hall. The St. Martinsheim served as a retirement home until around 1990.
The church was blessed by Berlin's first bishop Christian Schreiber .
For external design
The exterior of the building complex, which was very different from the usual church buildings at the time of construction, was "explained" in the commemorative publication for the consecration of the church as follows:
“Now our beautiful, new St. Martin's Church is ready! [...] St. Martin is a church that is built with modern means in a modern style. However, it does not deny tradition, because with its three-aisled interior and exterior shape it is linked to the basilica. In the onlookers it triggers many pros and cons - certainly not a bad sign, because where there is movement, there is life. Anyone who passes her from Mahlsdorf to Kaulsdorf or vice versa is captivated by her - the view involuntarily goes up to the high, broad tower facade. Today we are no longer in medieval times of exultant Gothic, the time when religion was everything. We are pushed into the defense today. St. Martin in Kaulsdorf rises like a mighty knight:
his feet - the chapel porches - his mighty shoulders - the wide tower facade - his head - the 7 meter high cross - his sword - the middle tower slot - which vertically divides the facade. St. Martin, for example, rises up on one of the town's main roads and says to the outside world: 'I stand here armored and armed as a representative of an almost two thousand year old Christian culture'. "
The inside of the church
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The interior has three aisles and a flat, multi-span wooden beam ceiling. The stained glass windows of the baptistery with motifs of the patron saint, Saint Martin, which were designed in 1930 by Odo Tattenpach , deserve special mention .
The chancel, faced with clinker bricks, is dominated by a large mosaic by the artist Charles Crodel and depicting scenes of the Resurrection next to a medieval wooden crucifix in an Art Nouveau style . This altar design was created after the Second World War. Originally there was a floor-to-ceiling cross made of bricks on the altar wall with a four-meter-high figure of Christ by the sculptor Hans Perathoner, carved from an oak trunk . When it was unveiled, it sparked controversy because of its expressionistic design language. Against the resistance of the parish priest Alois Schölzel, the Berlin bishop Schreiber ordered it to be removed. It was put into storage and, after a stopover in the Evangelical Hope Church (Berlin-Pankow), has been hanging in the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord in Berlin-Marzahn since 2000 .
The stained glass in the tower windows - a cycle of angels making music - were executed by the Puhl & Wagner workshops in Berlin based on a design by Crodel and inaugurated on December 15, 1946 together with the enamel work of the tabernacle door, also designed by Crodel .
The low side aisles include sandstone reliefs, the 14 Stations of the Cross show and were designed in the years 1929/1930. The windows of the aisles are round like eyes.
The church has an organ .
Numerous works of art from the Middle Ages, mostly donated by other parishes, found space inside the church and form an impressive contrast to the simple building:
- a marble tabernacle from the 15th century, from northern Italy ,
- a carved altar from the end of the 15th century,
- a closet with a pietà ,
- a small crucifix from the 17th century,
- a wax relief of Saint Joseph with baby Jesus
- a carving group of Saint Martin with a beggar .
The other church treasures include a pair of brass candlesticks from the 16th century, three identical altar candlesticks and numerous other panel paintings and wooden portraits.
Church life
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In addition to church activities such as church services, communion, weddings, there is a lively parish life for the around 3000 parishioners. In particular, an ecumenical choir with around 40 singers as well as groups of children, young people, families and senior citizens should be emphasized. A parish library is open to those interested and excursions / celebrations are organized. There are friendly relations with the “ Communauté de Taizé ”, founded in Taizé , France in 1949 . A Catholic kindergarten is located right next to the church ensemble.
Location
The interior was used as the location for a scene from the 2018 television series Babylon Berlin , which is set in Berlin in 1929.
literature
- Institute for Monument Preservation (Ed.): Capital Berlin, II. (= The architectural and art monuments in the GDR.) Henschelverlag, Berlin 1984, pp. 257–262.
- Christine Goetz : Art and Church. To the former high altar of the Church of St. Martin in Berlin-Kaulsdorf. In: Museumsjournal , 23rd year 2009, issue April – June, p. 9 f.
- Jens Rieser: The Catholic parish church of St. Martin in Kaulsdorf and the crucifix by Hans Perathoner. In: Anja Franziska Denker, Lothar Hermann: The monuments in Berlin, Marzahn-Hellersdorf district. Lukas Verlag, Berlin 2002, ISBN 3-931836-73-8 , pp. 130 ff. ( Limited preview of Google books )
- Christine Goetz, Matthias Hoffmann-Tauschwitz: Churches Berlin Potsdam. Wichern- und Morus-Verlag, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-87554-368-8 , p. 112.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Entry in the Berlin State Monument List with further information
- ↑ https://www.st-martin-kaulsdorf.de/seite/290851/perathonerkreuz.html
- ↑ Location: Church of St. Martin. The memorial service for fallen soldiers , rbb24, August 31, 2018 online