St. Just (Kamenz)
The Church of St. Just (also St. Jodokus) is one of the four Protestant churches in Kamenz and is primarily used as a place of worship for burials . The wall paintings in the choir of the former pilgrims' chapel, which were created around 1400, are significant in terms of art history .
history
Late Romanesque -looking fighters on the triumphal arch indicate that the church was originally built in the first half of the 13th century. In 1377 there was talk of changes to an existing building. In connection with this work, the painting and the vaulting of the choir were probably also created .
The patronage of St. Jodokus - the name later changed to St. Just - suggests a pilgrim chapel, especially since the church was located in the northwestern part of the city on the road to Königsbrück and thus probably on Hohe Straße . Numerous altar donations are documented for the 15th century, in addition to the patron u. a. dedicated to Saints Maria , Oswald (before 1455), Andreas , Bernhardinus , Jakobus , Katharina , Barbara (1458), Antonius and Paulus Erimita (1494). In 1520, however, only three altars are proven.
In 1542 the chapel burned down and was repaired with demolition material from an apparently no longer used St. James chapel. The results of dendrochronological studies show that the roof of the choir and nave had to be replaced at that time . The longhouse windows with tracery were probably made at that time. There has been evidence of a cemetery at the chapel since 1506, which was later expanded several times to the south-west; after the Reformation the church was primarily used as a burial church.
In the 17th century the galleries and the stalls were built in, the roof turret was not added to the church until the 19th century. In 1911 the building was restored and in 1935 the painting of the choir was (re-) discovered and then exposed. In 1936 the west portal was given a completely new design as the new main entrance.
Building description and equipment
The hall church presents itself as a plastered quarry stone building with a hipped roof in the east and buttresses on the choir. The west gable is constructed steeper than the rest of the roof, which is probably related to its redesign in 1542.
The flat-roofed hall, from which some usable rooms were separated in the west in the 19th century, is joined by the recessed, polygonal choir with cross-ribbed vaults. In the north wall of the nave is the old main entrance, whose pointed arched portal is strongly profiled. The wooden galleries are on the north and south sides; the organ gallery lies to the west over the separated rooms. A late Gothic crucifix adorns the triumphal arch.
Painting of the choir
The paintings in the choir, which are made using the fresco secco technique , were made around 1400 and show a clear Bohemian influence. In order to be able to paint a larger area, two choir windows, the places of which are now adorned with images of saints, were bricked up. On the triumphal arch there is a representation of Christ and the wise and foolish virgins. The north wall of the choir shows scenes from Mary's life in registers , the south wall scenes from the story of Jesus' passion ; perspective architectural painting between the scenes.
Coronation Altar of Mary
The carved altar was created around 1500 and was originally located in the monastery church of St. Annen before it found its place in the St. Just church in 1770. The center shrine shows a representation of the Coronation of Mary in front of angels making music, next to it the four church fathers . The side wings present scenes from Maria's life, which are continued on the back in the form of painted pictures. Mary and two other female saints stand on pedestals above the shrine .
literature
- Cornelius Gurlitt : Descriptive representation of the older architectural and art monuments of the Kingdom of Saxony: The cities of Kamenz and Pulsnitz. 36th issue, Dresden 1912. - Full text in the offer of the SLUB
- Georg Dehio : Handbook of German Art Monuments : Saxony I. Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-422-03043-3 .
- Klaus Mertens: Evangelical Churches Kamenz. Small art guide No. 2011, Verlag Schnell & Steiner, Munich 1992.
- Albrecht Sturm: Evangelical Churches Kamenz. Small art guide No. 2011 (3rd, revised edition), Verlag Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2009.
Web links
Coordinates: 51 ° 16 '17.7 " N , 14 ° 5' 21.4" E