St. Markus (Minkelfeld)
The Roman Catholic Church of St. Mark in Minkelfeld , in the information directory of cultural monuments for the district of Mayen-Koblenz as “Kath. Chapel St. Marcus ”, is located in the local community of Kerben in the district of Mayen-Koblenz in Rhineland-Palatinate . It belongs to the parish community Ochtendung-Kobern, which lies in the Maifeld-Untermosel dean's office and is assigned to the Trier diocese .
Building history
Archbishop Egbert von Trier gave the St. Paulin Abbey in Trier an estate or a village called Kerve (today's Kerben bei Polch ). The Minkelfeld farm was located in the district of this bailiwick and in the borough of Kerben. He was in 1147 by Pope Eugene III. as belonging to the Lonniger Stift ("predium in Michelve cum capella", translated: "Estate in Minkelfeld with chapel") confirmed. A copy of a document (MRUB I, No. 546 - MRR I, No. 2067) raises some questions about the exact time of the first naming of the church, which is often given in literature as the year 1148. The transcription and translation solve the question and show the correct year 1147.
The church in Minkelfeld, which has existed since 1147, was not originally built at the current location. It was on the opposite side of the street about 50 to 60 meters to the west. The corresponding parcel 244 at that time is marked in the associated land register with the note 'petite chapelle'. This chapel was thoroughly renovated in 1823 and was already consecrated to St. Mark (Evangelist) at that time . His patronage festival falls on April 25 of each year. No information has been passed on about the architectural design of the former church. According to the updated cadastral plan, the old chapel stood on the parcel, which has meanwhile been renamed No. 216, until at least 1874.
Today's listed hall church made of Krotzen masonry was built in the years 1854/56 according to plans by the Koblenz architect Hermann Nebel in a neo-Gothic style after the old building had become dilapidated. The church resembles the St. Silvester Chapel in Brenk like a twin sister, as it was designed by the same architect. According to tradition, the land for the new church was made available after 1855 by the Minkelfelder family Agnes and Alwin Müller.
In 1976/77 the church was renovated inside and out. For decades, residents saved a voluntary monthly amount for the expected costs of renovating the church. In 1956 the citizens of Minkelfeld financed an electric heating system. The Minkelfelder stayed true to this principle of saving in favor of their church until the 1980s. Many maintenance work could be carried out immediately.
The gable of the church was renewed in 1994 and made of Krotzen masonry (here: cuboid made of foamy basalt lava); he carries the church bell. After the bell-bearing turret had been renewed, the plastic plaster applied at an unknown point in time was knocked off the entire building envelope. The old facade of the church with the lava stones typical of the region emerged. Edited with a sandblasting device, the building got more and more of its former character. Originally, the masonry was supposed to be plastered again according to the plans of the Lonniger Parish Administration Council, but this met with fierce resistance from Minkelfelder citizens. It was only when the Mayen-Koblenz district administration had requested a construction freeze from Kerbener Mayor Helmut Eberz that work was stopped and the Trier diocese was called in, as it bore 75% of the costs. In June 1995 the parish council gave way and the masonry was designed according to the wishes of the citizens. The joint network had to be renewed after the plaster was removed.
In 2016, an expert report found that the roof of the church was pressing on the outer walls and that these had to be relieved by appropriate carpentry work. Due to cracks in the plaster and vaults, pieces of paint and plaster came off the ceiling. With a view to the statics, the entire roof structure had to be upgraded. The central purlin was reinforced and the cracks in the vaulted sail pressed. In addition, a new coat of paint was required, which was chosen according to the specifications of the diocese conservator in the original color of the time of construction. In combination with the incidence of light from the morning and evening sun through the stained glass window, it leads to an interesting play of colors. The renovation work was carried out under the direction of architect Michael Arnold from Koblenz. The reopening took place after four years of closure and 10 months of construction on May 17, 2019 as part of a St. Mark's procession from Lonnig to Minkelfeld, followed by a church service. The commitment of the volunteers was also recognized. The € 150,000 building project was supported with € 43,000 in donations. The diocese of Trier gave € 62,500, the rest was borne by the parish of Lonnig, to which the Minkelfeld branch church belongs.
Furnishing
In 1959 the church received a new bell donated by Alois Müller as thanks for his happy return from the war.
The various church windows were financed by local donors, whose names and the year of donation are shown in the window glass. After that, the church windows were donated in 1942. According to tradition, the frames of the old windows were ramshackle and the lead frames of poor quality.
The Minkelfelder church also has a Pietà carved out of wood .
In the manual of the Diocese of Trier, the church is marked with the identifier mSS (with Sacro Sanctum), which indicates the right to own a tabernacle . The 2015 manual also refers to the existing harmonium. The harmonium was removed after the renovation work in 2018/2019 due to an irreparable defect; it is replaced by a portable keyboard at trade fairs.
Interior
The interior of the small single-nave church is covered with plain white plaster. Three pointed, narrow, simple tracery windows structure the building, which is closed off by a divided apse. It is lit by two smaller tracery windows on either side. The ceiling above the nave is designed as a groin vault and thus remains true to the neo-Gothic style.
Sculptural decoration
Saint Catherine of Alexandria
On the left long wall of the church, in the middle between the ogival windows, stands the sculpture of St. Catherine of Alexandria . The angel carries a banner with the name of the saint. The plaster figure is not colored, only whitewashed. Only a few details, such as the banner and the hem of her dress, are set in gold. Her typical attribute, the part of a wagon wheel that indicates her martyrdom, is golden. The saint grips the robe on her breast with her left hand, and rests her right hand on the part of the wagon wheel to her side. The gaze transfigured upwards is adorned with a golden crown. Legends about the martyr date back to the 10th century. It is reported that the educated king's daughter from Cyprus saw the child Jesus in a dream and put an engagement ring on her. She then succeeded in converting fifty pagan scholars to Christianity. Emperor Maxentius (306-312) had her flagellated for this and set up a wheel with sharp iron to torment Catherine. After a lightning bolt destroyed the wheel and killed the hangman, Katharina's head was cut off. The saint is often depicted as a princely dressed woman with the attributes of crown, book, martyr's palm and with the wheel, which is often shown broken. Sometimes there is a little man with a crown under her feet - representing Emperor Maxentius. Katharina is one of the fourteen helpers in need .
John Evangelista
Corresponding to St. Catherine, on the opposite wall side between the two windows, there is a plaster sculpture of St. John Evangelista, also on a console carried by an angel. This whitewashed statue has a gold setting only on the hem of the robe and on the banner. John, the apostle and so-called favorite disciple of Jesus, is depicted boyish and with a gently inclined gaze. He is holding a golden chalice in his left hand. His typical attribute, the eagle, sits on the left at his feet. Other attributes with which he is often represented are a book and a snake that winds its way up from the chalice. John the Evangelist was the son of Zebedee (Mk 1.19 ff.) And Maria Salome (Mk 16.1 and Mt 27.56), one of the women who went to Jesus' tomb on Easter morning.
Holy Mary
On the side to the left of the apse , on a pedestal, but this time without a supporting angel, is a colorful sculpture of the Holy Virgin Mary. Maria wears a light yellow undergarment under a light outer garment. This is provided with ornaments. She gently raised both hands in a gesture of blessing. A sickle-like figuration can be seen at her feet. It is possible that this representation is a strong modification of the Madonna of the Crescent Moon . Looks and facial expressions, however, reveal at least one Byzantine type.
According to tradition, the base of St. Mary housed the Pietà described below, which was stolen around this time, until the 1950s. The pedestal, which was orphaned for many years, was adorned by St. Mary. It is a gift from the Minkelfelder Franz Esch family.
Sacred Heart statue
On the right side of the apse a statue of the Sacred Heart can be seen on a raised wall bracket. It is the only one of the wall sculptures that is made of wood and without painting. With an alert gaze and elaborately designed, finely laid curls, Christ holds his heart in the middle of his chest with his left hand. He holds his right hand in a gesture of blessing. The bleeding Heart of Jesus framed by a crown of thorns or a glory (sometimes pierced by nails) was already depicted as a devotional image in late medieval woodcuts . The Heart of Jesus, as a symbol of divine love, can be found in the course of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus originally in the Carthusian monasteries, in post-medieval times especially in the Jesuits, on paraments, devotional objects etc. the heart on the chest. This motif is mainly found in sculptures and on the holy pictures of the 18th and 19th centuries. Century, which were placed in prayer books.
Pietà
The Pietà was stolen during a break-in in the 1950s and suddenly reappeared around 1965. After that it was put into private safekeeping for security reasons. It is only set up on the occasion of the few masses in the church. The small-figure Pietà shows Maria in her typical color with a red undergarment and a blue upper garment that is gilded on the outside. Her son's corpse stretches across her lap. Gestures and facial expressions are poorly worked out, as is the anatomy of the two figures.
Altarpiece
Behind the altar is a second pedestal on which the tabernacle is attached. Behind it is an altarpiece , surrounded by a Gothic eyelash decorated with pinnacles . It shows a man with a halo, a red robe, a quill and a book on a gold background. It is obvious to assume here the evangelist Mark, the patron saint of the church.
window
Next to Saint Elizabeth and Saint Joseph (in two of the windows) the four evangelist symbols can be found. In one window the eagle for John and the winged man for Matthew can be seen, in the opposite the lion for Mark and the bull for Luke.
Dating
Due to the lack of inscriptions and dates as well as the lack of mention in the written sources, the chronological assignment of the sculptures and windows is not easy. According to tradition, the Pietà already dates from the previous building of the church and should therefore be dated before 1850. However, reliable sources are not yet available for this. From a stylistic point of view, however, the late 19th century can be assumed for all sculptures, so that a limitation between the 1860s and the 1950s can be assumed.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ General Directorate for Cultural Heritage Rhineland-Palatinate (ed.): Informational directory of cultural monuments - Mayen-Koblenz district. Mainz 2020, p. 36 (PDF; 5.8 MB).
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↑ Note: The bull of Pope Eugene III. The original text for the Lonnig Monastery is dated February 13 (idus februarii) 1148. However, since the beginning of the year was determined according to the “Trier style” (the beginning of the year only after the Annunciation on March 25th), according to today's calendar, February 13th 1147 is the date when the old chapel was first named.
The Koblenz copy of the bull incorrectly states the year of incarnation 1146 ("Indict. Xl anno 1146. Pont.Eugenii papa III a.III. Copy"), although the 11th indication (11th year cycle) mentioned in the original was the year 1148 and the 3rd year of the reign of Pope Eugene III mentioned in the bull. to be dated from February 15, 1147 to February 14, 1148. The correct year of incarnation is mentioned in the Middle Rhine document book, 1147.
From November 1147 to February 1148 Pope Eugene III. held a synod in Trier. He had previously been in France. - ↑ Landeshauptarchiv Koblenz, inventory 730, no. 679, p. 1 (cadastral plan)
- ↑ Landeshauptarchiv Koblenz, inventory 733, no. 679, vol. 1–2 (land register)
- ↑ Landeshauptarchiv Koblenz, inventory 730, No. 679, p. 16 (cadastral plan)
- ↑ The Chapel for Holy New Year's Eve (Brenk), AW-Wiki (Ahrweiler district): [1]
- ↑ The "Two Equals" of the master builder Hermann Nebel, home yearbook of the Mayen-Koblenz district of 2002, pages 113/114, contribution by Hans Schmitz: [2]
- ↑ Christa Laab-Dedenbach, Minkelfeld and his church, restoration - a legend without end?
- ^ Archive for Church History of the Middle Rhine, Volume 48/1996, and Rhein-Zeitung from June 1, 1995.
- ↑ Information on the renovation 2018/2019 from Maifelder Nachrichten, No. 21/2019, page 51
- ↑ Handbook of the Diocese of Trier, as of 2015
- ↑ P. ASSION, Das Mirakel der Sankt Katharina, Diss. Heidelberg 1969
- ↑ Engelbert Kirschbaum, Wolfgang Braunfels (ed.): Lexicon of Christian Iconography. Herder, 1994, ISBN 3-451-22568-9 .
- ↑ K. RICHTSTÄTTER, Die Herz Jesu Verben des dt. MA, Regensburg, Munich 1924; M. BARTH, The Sacred Heart Adoration of the German MA, in: Zeitschr. f. Ascese and Mystik 4, 1929; M. HARTIG, Das dt. H., in: Das Münster 2, 1948
Coordinates: 50 ° 18 ′ 54.2 " N , 7 ° 22 ′ 41.7" E