St. Nikolaus (Göttingen-Nikolausberg)

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View of the monastery church from the southeast

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of St. Nikolaus ( listen ? / I ) in the Nikolausberg district of Göttingen was originally the collegiate church of an Augustinian convent . The oldest components date from the 12th century. The church "is one of the most important examples of medieval architecture in the Göttingen area". It is part of the assets of the General Hanover Monastery Fund and is now managed by the Hanover Monastery Chamber. Audio file / audio sample

history

Beginnings

The exact time of the foundation of the monastery and the construction of the church is not historically proven. However, from stylistic references, particularly from parallels to the imperial cathedral in Königslutter and from a documented source, construction began around 1150. In the document of September 20, 1162, Pope Alexander III confirmed . the Nikolausberg nuns their monastery property. In addition to the actual monastery grounds, this also included four Hufen in the neighboring village of Roringen . In the year "1180 it is still attested there, but as early as 1184 the convent was relocated to Weende in the west ". The reason for this is the poor accessibility and the lack of water supply.

Importance as a place of pilgrimage

After the departure of the Augustinians, the St. Church consecrated to Nikolaus von Myra because of the Nicholas relics kept there, it is of particular importance as a place of pilgrimage. Indulgences for pilgrims who traveled to the church have been recorded in 1261, 1387 and 1518 . "The income, which flowed abundantly, especially during the Nikolausfest, represented an important basis for the foundation of the monastery in Weende." A well-known pilgrim was Duchess Margarete, the widow of Otto I , who visited the church in 1397. A pilgrimage of Landgrave Ludwig of Hesse to St. Nicholas Church is attested for the year 1430. In 1447, in the context of the Saxon Fratricidal War , it was looted by the army of Duke Wilhelm of Saxony . The introduction of the Reformation ended the importance of the church as a place of pilgrimage. However, the church remained a popular destination until the 19th century, as evidenced by graffiti carvings and inscriptions on the church walls in the choir.

architecture

Interior to the east

The original church building was built in the middle of the 12th century in the style of a Romanesque basilica from limestone rubble . The corners, bezels, buttresses , profiles and cornices are made of red sandstone . The transept with crossing and the choir , as well as possibly also the tower substructure, date from the Romanesque period . The late Romanesque structure, including the crossing pillars, the crossing arches, consoles , columns , capitals and fighters with ornamental and figurative building sculpture, is particularly remarkable. The two “lion sculptures that lie lengthways above the floor on the threshold of the choir, look to the west and possibly take on a symbolic guardian function” deserve special mention. ”While the lion on the northeastern crossing pillar with a human in its mouth and a snake on its paw is well preserved is, the southern lion was largely destroyed by the later installation of a pulpit . The lion sculptures are influenced by the lion portal at the Imperial Cathedral of Königslutter. Also noteworthy are the two almost fully sculptural, antique-like columns resting on consoles, which support the girder of the western arch. The southern column has a twisted shaft, a figural cube capital and a fighter with a chessboard frieze. The shaft of the northern is of wide fluting furrowed; the fighter above its leaf capital is adorned with figurative, grotesque motifs.

The church was rebuilt in several phases in Gothic forms from the 14th century , with the Romanesque choir closure having to give way to a Gothic choir polygon with a five- eighth end. The Gothic nave was built in the late 15th century, as evidenced by a testament in favor of the building. Instead of the Romanesque basilica, a three-aisled, three- bay staggered hall with a ribbed vault was built . The keystone of the western central nave yoke bears the year MCCCCCI (i.e. 1501), so that the completion of the work can be dated to around 1501.

Furnishing

View through the nave in west direction
Choir room with high altar

The font that is now in the south transept is dated to the 12th century.

In the niche at the eastern end of the south transept there is a replica of a Romanesque Madonna figure. The original is now in the Lower Saxony State Museum in Hanover and follows the representation form of the sedes sapientiae . The Mother of God sitting on a throne with turned backrests originally included a seated Christ Child; it is stylistically assigned to the Rhineland.

Under the west gallery is a second used column, which is older than the Romanesque St. Nicholas Church. It is a Romanesque column with a cube capital and a chessboard frieze that once supported the neo-Romanesque pulpit from the 19th century.

Another figure of the Madonna, which is placed above the southern nave altar, and a statue of St. Nicholas in the north transept belong to the Gothic period around 1300.

The altar retable, which is now placed on the left side altar, was made around 1400. The triptych with 24 painted scenes from the life of Jesus is stylistically assigned to the master of the Göttingen Jacobi altarpiece. Since most of the scenes on the central panel have been completely destroyed, they were replaced in 1990 by modern paintings by Carl Clobes .

The carved high altar was built around 1490. In its shrine there is a depiction of the Calvary ; the wings show several saints.

The stone altar in the transept, which originally supposedly kept relics of St. Nicholas, is empty today.

Painting

The painting of the eastern crossing arch with medallions , which alternately show flowers and figures, was created in the Romanesque period. Later paintings from the time of the renovation in the 15th century show, in addition to ornaments and tendrils, four angels making music around the Lamb of God , the head of Christ in the south transept and Saints Andrew , Peter , Paul and James in the apex of the vaulted fields .

monastery

In the 19th century, remains of the foundation walls of the monastery buildings were still visible at the point where the parish hall stands today. Street names such as Augustinerstraße , Am Kreuze and Nonnenstieg are still reminiscent of the nunnery .

literature

  • Hans Georg Gmelin: Medieval art in Göttingen and works of Göttingen artists . In: Göttingen. History of a university town . tape 1 . Göttingen 1987, p. 571-616 .
  • Helga Jörgens: The monastery and pilgrimage church to Nikolausberg . 2nd Edition. Göttingen 1993.
  • Christian Scholl: St. Nikolaus Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . Deutscher Kunstverlag, Berlin / Munich 2012.
  • Hans Wille: The monastery and pilgrimage church to Nikolausberg . Göttingen 2012.

Web links

Commons : St. Nikolaus (Göttingen-Nikolausberg)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 51 ° 33 ′ 41.7 ″  N , 9 ° 58 ′ 40.1 ″  E

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Scholl: St. Nicholas Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . 2012, p. 2 .
  2. ↑ Scholl: St. Nicholas Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . 2012, p. 2-4 .
  3. ↑ Scholl: St. Nicholas Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . 2012, p. 4 .
  4. ↑ Scholl: St. Nicholas Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . 2012, p. 8-9 .
  5. ↑ See Scholl: St. Nicholas Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . 2012, p. 14 .
  6. ^ Jörgens: The monastery and pilgrimage church to Nikolausberg . 1993, p. 47-49 .
  7. ^ Gmelin: Medieval art in Göttingen and works by Göttingen artists . 1987, p. 572-573 .
  8. ^ Gmelin: Medieval art in Göttingen and works by Göttingen artists . 1987, p. 574-575 .
  9. ↑ Scholl: St. Nicholas Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . 2012, p. 26-30 .
  10. ↑ Scholl: St. Nicholas Church in Göttingen-Nikolausberg . 2012, p. 22-26 .
  11. ^ Jörgens: The monastery and pilgrimage church to Nikolausberg . 1993, p. 36-41 .