St. Gallus (Rheinfelden-Eichsel)

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St. Gallus from the west

The Church of St. Gallus in the Rheinfeld district of Eichsel is a Roman Catholic parish church, which is under the main patronage of St. Gallus and the secondary patronage of the Three Holy Virgins . Due to its legendary history, the church is part of the "Mythical Places on the Upper Rhine" .

history

The donation of a piece of land by four brothers in honor of St. Gall and the three virgins in 1192 allows the conclusion that the church in Eichsel existed before that. The cult of the three Eichsel virgins Kunigundis, Mechtundis (or Munegundis) and Wibranda evidently has early medieval origins. Since nothing is known about their origins, their lives and their effects, they are often wrongly associated with the legend of the 11,000 Ursulan virgins.

In 1286 the then still small church was enlarged and consecrated in October 1288. In the church were the graves of the three virgins, above which pedestals and images were placed. On June 16, 1504 the bones were raised from the graves in the presence of Cardinal Raimund Peraudi and the veneration of the three virgins of Eichsel as saints of the church was confirmed. As papal legate , Peraudi personally headed the commission of inquiry. Over 5000 people attended the solemn ceremony.

The introduction of the Reformation in Markgräflerland put an end to the veneration of saints, so that pilgrimages to Eichsel also subsided. Nevertheless, they were carried out until 1783, when Emperor Joseph II forbade all pilgrimage activities . It was not until 1862 that it was resumed in the form of the Eichsler dealership .

Due to the poor structural condition of the church at the beginning of the 19th century, the church had to be renovated from 1810 onwards. In the course of this work, Jodok Friedrich Wilhelm delivered two side altars in 1827. The pulpit and the font were also renewed. In 1852 the bell tower was raised by one storey and received its characteristic, offset square structure. A redesign of the nave followed in 1876 and the choir , built in 1899/1900, marks the end of the extensive redesign and renovation.

A comprehensive renovation took place between 1978 and 1981, during which the original Gothic state was restored. To do this, the old windows were exposed and the ornamental paintings that framed them were restored.

description

Location and structure

View from the northeast

The Gallus Church is located in Ober-Eichsel at 440 meters above sea ​​level and is surrounded by a cemetery. From the small plateau you have a view towards the Rhine valley and Switzerland.

The main entrance to the church is on the tower side. This five-storey tower with a square floor plan has pointed arches of sound on the fourth floor . The fifth floor of the bell tower , added in 1852, jumps back about a third and is bordered by a low parapet along the upper edge of the floor below. This square storey with bevelled corners has a pyramid roof with a bent-in lower third and a tower ball and cross at its top. The upper floor also has ogival arcades on all sides. On the third floor there is a clock face of the tower clock on three sides. A corner block runs through the entire height of the tower.

The east to the tower closes nave with four located on the long sides arched windows provided with an acute-angled gable roof is covered. The nave has a side entrance on its north side. The lower and narrower choir also has a gable roof, which is hipped at its polygonal end . On the south side of the choir there is an extension with a pent roof .

Interior and equipment

View into the nave towards the choir

The main entrance leads to a vestibule in the bell tower. A flat wooden ceiling has been drawn into the adjoining nave. Above the entrance from the tower hall there is a gallery accessible via a spiral staircase , on which the organ has been placed. The choir and nave are connected by an ogival triumphal arch .

The choir ceiling consists of a Gothic star vault with a keystone consisting of three coats of arms . The high altar with wing paintings in the choir comes from the Marmon art workshop in Sigmaringen. It depicts selected scenes from the Passion of Jesus Christ . The stained glass windows in the choir show St. Gallus on the left and St. Ursula on the right . The celebration altar, the sediles and the ambo in front of the high altar come from the Rheinfeld artist Leonhard Eder .

Pietà

All three pieces of equipment are supported by curved columns and are made of reddish sandstone . The sections are decorated with ornaments derived from the Gothic . The ambo bears symbols of the four evangelists . Easter candlesticks , cross and candlesticks are also from Eder and were made in bronze.

There is a side altar on either side of the triumphal arch. The one on the left depicts Mary as Queen, who is surrounded by six reliefs from her life story. The one on the right is the altar of virgins, which contains the relics of the three holy virgins . The angel figures in the burst come from the 18th century.

On the north wall of the nave hangs a group of figures made of lime wood, showing the Madonna with the baby Jesus and scepter . The play of folds in her clothing suggests its origins in the Upper Rhine region from the years after 1500. The very vividly depicted Pietà on the south wall rests on a small ledge made of red sandstone, which Eder created in the style of the celebration altar. The figure dates from around 1650.

The window glazing comes from the artist Hans-Günther van Look ; it was designed by him in 1987 and shows, among other things, the scenes “Annunciation”, “Baptism of Jesus”, “Last Supper” and “Resurrection”.

Bells

Bell tower

The oldest bell from 1687 is dedicated to St. Kunigunde . After part of the bells had to be surrendered during the Second World War , they were replaced in 1950 by three made of special bronze .

The four-part bell is composed as follows:

No. Chime Casting year Caster
1 as ′ 1687 Heinrich Weitenauer, Basel
2 ges ′ 1950 Albert Junker, Brilon
3 b ′ 1950 Albert Junker, Brilon
4th of'' 1950 Albert Junker, Brilon
Organ loft

organ

The organ was built between 1829 and 1830 by Franz Josef Merklin . It was revised in 1876 by Fridolin Merklin and an overhaul in 1889 by August Merklin. The tin prospectus confiscated during the First World War was replaced by one made of bronze in 1922. In 1981, Fischer and Krämer from Endingen carried out an extensive restoration and restoration of the old concept, so that the organ is now a listed building. The instrument works with abrasive loading , mechanical play and register contracture and has a manual , a pedal and 14 register .

literature

Web links

Commons : Galluskirche (Rheinfelden-Eichsel)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Handbook of the Archdiocese of Freiburg , Volume 1 Realschematismus, 1939, p. 509
  2. ^ Helm: Churches and chapels in the Markgräflerland , p. 266
  3. ↑ a b c d Helm: Churches and chapels in the Markgräflerland , p. 267 (12.4)
  4. ^ Helm: Churches and chapels in the Markgräflerland , p. 266 (12.3)
  5. ^ Hermann Ginter : Works of art of the church of Eichsel . In: O. Deisler: Eichsel. From the past of the parish , 1956, pp. 95 ff.
  6. ^ Annemarie Heimann-Schwarzweber: Topography of the historical sights . In: Wolfgang Bechtold (Ed.): Der Kreis Lörrach , 1971, p. 96.

Coordinates: 47 ° 35 ′ 58.9 ″  N , 7 ° 45 ′ 28.8 ″  E