St. Jakobus, St. Laurentius and St. Cross (Biberbach)
The Catholic parish and pilgrimage church of St. Jakobus, St. Laurentius and Holy Cross in Biberbach , a market town in the Augsburg district in the Bavarian administrative district of Swabia , was built in the Baroque style at the end of the 17th century . The Herrgöttle von Biberbach has been venerated in the church since the 16th century , a Romanesque wooden crucifix from around 1220, which became a popular pilgrimage in the 17th and 18th centuries.
history
The parish of Biberbach must have existed before the middle of the 12th century, as the Augsburg canon Matthäus von Pappenheim recorded in his chronicle a donation of the parish fief to the cathedral monastery in Augsburg in 1141. For the year 1188 a church consecration, presumably of the parish church, which was however further down in the village, is attested in writing.
The predecessor of today's pilgrimage church, located on a hill, was a Gothic building consecrated in 1484 , which was built on the foundation walls of the castle chapel consecrated to St. Nicholas . The former castle chapel was converted into a parish church and the patronage of the old parish church, St. James and St. Laurence , was transferred to it. A large part of the quarry stone masonry of the old castle chapel is still preserved in today's church.
In the course of the renovations in 1616, the chancel was expanded and the tower raised. The Romanesque wooden crucifix, which initially hung as a triumphal cross in a larger church in the neighboring Württemberger area and, according to tradition, reached Biberbach in 1525, is said to have been forcibly removed from the church by Swedish troops during the Thirty Years' War . The then pastor Ulrich Zusemschneider hid with his parish in the attic of the church, but was betrayed and died tied to a tree. There is a memorial today not far from where he died.
In 1654 the tower was struck by lightning. In the accident, two people who had rushed there to hear the weather ring were killed. In 1655 the crucifix was rediscovered by the local pastor Sebastian Widmann and attached to the southern church wall by his successor Anton Matthes. At the end of the 17th century a lively pilgrimage to the so-called Hergöttle von Biberbach developed . The local pastor Anton Ginther got official recognition from Pope Innocent XI during a trip to Rome in 1685 . personally. As the growing number of pilgrims could no longer find a place in the church, it was decided to build a new building, which the builder Valerian Brenner was commissioned to build. Ginther raised over 20,000 guilders for the construction.
In 1684 the foundation stone was laid and the nave was built. In 1693 the choir was built and the tower was provided with an octagon and an onion dome. In 1694 the work was completed and in 1697 the consecration took place by the Augsburg auxiliary bishop Johannes Eustache Egolf von Westernach . The original ceiling painting was painted by the Augsburg painter Johann Georg Knappich between 1693 and 1695. The gallery with its emblematic parapet and ceiling paintings, which were created by Johann Caspar Menrad in 1693, has been preserved from this first phase of furnishing . The sculptures of the apostle James and Christ taking a rest by Bartholomäus Eberl (Öberl) also go back to this time.
After the interruption caused by the War of the Spanish Succession , the nave was given new fittings from 1712 under Dominikus Zimmermann . Further changes to the interior were made under Johann Georg Hitzelberger , who led the construction work from 1753. The current ceiling paintings by Balthasar Riepp and the stucco decor by Franz Xaver Feuchtmayer were created . In the years 1853/54, 1868/70, 1908 (probably planned) and 1957/58 further restoration work took place.
architecture
Exterior construction
The bell tower rises on the north side of the nave, the square substructure of which goes back to the Gothic church building from 1484. The upper storey, built in 1616, is crowned with corner obelisks , the two-story octagon is covered by an onion dome with a lantern . The east and west facades, like the transepts, are decorated with gables and are structured by pilasters . The choir apse is of an onion-shaped half- dome- covered.
inner space
The single nave nave is divided into three bays . The retracted choir has three naves. Its five yokes, like the nave, are vaulted by barrels with lancet caps . A double gallery forms the western end of the nave.
Frescoes
The frescoes in the choir and nave were done in 1753 by Balthasar Riepp . They refer to the Biberbach pilgrimage and have the veneration of the cross as their theme. The central nave fresco shows the redemption of the world through Christ's death on the cross. The cross stands on a mound in which a dragon presents the apple of original sin . The converted sinner Mary Magdalene crouches at the foot of the cross . Angels float beneath the cross, collecting the blood of Christ in bowls and pouring it out over suffering humanity. A young female figure with a chalice, host and papal cross symbolizes the church.
The two smaller ceiling paintings depict the finding of the cross by St. Helena and the return of the cross to Jerusalem by the Byzantine emperor Herakleios .
The choir fresco depicts the veneration of the cross by angels, saints and people from all over the world. In the center of the picture floating angels present the cross. In addition, the two patron saints , the apostle James and St. Lawrence, are represented. A female figure with a tiara , papal cross and chalice symbolizes the church. The Trinity sits enthroned on the upper half of the picture, while the allegories of the four continents surround the globe on the lower half of the picture .
Nave fresco
Choir fresco
Stucco decor
Emblematic representations on the gallery
The 48 panel paintings on the west gallery were created by Joseph Caspar Menrad in 1693. The pictures on the lower gallery parapet depict the history of the Biberbach pilgrimage, while the pictures on the upper parapet contrast these episodes from the Old Testament. 30 boards are attached to the gallery ceilings, most of which are framed by tape. On the lower ceiling the depictions are provided with wreaths of flowers that refer to the Biberbach Rosary Brotherhood . The emblems on the upper ceiling relate to Christ. Some of them are depictions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus , some of them depictions of the cross or the Biberbach image of grace, which were addressed both to the pilgrims and to the Brotherhood of the Holy Cross, which has been documented in Biberbach since 1685.
Originally all representations were in color. Due to the poor state of preservation, the emblems of the upper gallery ceiling were painted over in monochrome brown in the 19th century.
Pilgrimage church and castle market
Lamb Of God
Angel and vine
Furnishing
- The most important piece of equipment is the Romanesque wooden crucifix in the four-nail type ( Herrgöttle von Biberbach ), which is dated around 1220. The assistant figures date from around 1720. The cross stands on a gallery in the place of the no longer preserved high altar.
- The remaining side and transept altars in stucco marble were designed by Dominikus Zimmermann around 1712/16. The altar leaves on the side altars were replaced by today's ones in the 19th century; those in the nave are attributed to the painter Johann Georg Knappich.
- The wooden sculpture of the apostle James on the gallery is dated around 1690/95 and attributed to Bartholomäus Eberl (Öberl).
- The black and gold framed pulpit was created at the end of the 17th century, the figures date from the first half of the 18th century.
- The numerous votive tablets in the side chapels go back to the years 1686 to 1881, the heyday of pilgrimages.
- Two paintings commemorate Pastor Ulrich Zusemschneider, who died in 1632 during the Thirty Years' War, one on the lower western gallery parapet and a large mural with an inscription on the wall opposite the rear side altar on the right.
Apostle James the Elder
Saint Lawrence
pulpit
Murder of Ulrich Zusemschneider
literature
- Stephanie Justus, Karl Kosel, Walter Pötzl, Heibert Stiegler: Biberbach. Catholic parish and pilgrimage church of St. Jakobus, St. Laurentius and Holy Cross . (= Great Art Guide . Volume 199). 3rd, revised edition. Schnell und Steiner publishing house, Regensburg 1997, ISBN 3-7954-1091-6 .
- Georg Dehio (revised by Bruno Bushart and Georg Paula): Handbuch der deutschen Kunstdenkmäler. Art monuments Bavaria III: Swabia . Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich 1989, ISBN 3-422-03008-5 , pp. 185-188.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Biberbach: St. Jakobus maj. Diocese of Augsburg
- ↑ Johann Georg Knappich. Retrieved April 26, 2020 .
- ↑ Martin Klonnek: Augsburg Land: Sights of the district of Augsburg . epubli, ISBN 978-3-7375-3220-4 (accessed April 26, 2020).
Andechs Monastery Church (Andechs) | Mary in misery (Baar) | St. Benedikt (Benediktbeuern) | St. Jakobus, St. Laurentius and St. Cross (Biberbach) | Pilgrimage Church Herrgottsruh (Friedberg) | Maria Hilf on the Lechfeld (Klosterlechfeld) | Marienfried (Pfaffenhofen an der Roth) | Maria Hilf (Speiden) | To Our Lady of Sorrows (Vilgertshofen) | St. Michael (Violau) | St. Leonhard im Forst (Wessobrunn) | Wigratzbad | Maria Vesperbild (Ziemetshausen)
Coordinates: 48 ° 30 ′ 54.4 " N , 10 ° 48 ′ 51.4" E