St. Nikolaus (Altfraunhofen)
The parish church of St. Nikolaus is a Roman Catholic church in Altfraunhofen in Lower Bavaria , ten kilometers south of Landshut and around 1400 meters from Bundesstraße 15 . It is an important example of early classicism in Germany, but it also has features of the late Rococo . The church, which can be seen from afar, is also known as the “ Cathedral of the Little Vilstal ” because of its size and is dedicated to Nikolaus von Myra .
history
The medieval previous church burned down almost completely within 33 hours after a lightning strike on the night of the light measurement day on February 2, 1791. In a traditional, spectacular rescue operation, parts of the furnishings in the burning church were brought to safety. Mainly due to the generosity of the territorial lord Adam Seifried Baroness von Fraunhofen and his wife Maria Anna Eva, the reconstruction began immediately. The brotherhood “ Maria vom Solst ”, founded in 1681 and still in existence today , which sees the church as its spiritual center, contributed financially to the reconstruction. Landshut's master city mason Johann Thaddäus Leitner and master carpenter Simon Kaltenbacher from Geisenhausen largely completed the church building in 1791, incorporating older fragments. In a difficult time, two years after the French Revolution , a decade before secularization in Bavaria and against the electoral ban on church renovations and, in particular, splendid baroque furnishings, a large, simple hall church was built .
In the years that followed, the church was gradually renovated. For this, Freiherr von Fraunhofen was able to win over two important Munich artists, the electoral court painter and later academy professor Andreas Seidl for the ceiling frescoes and the altar leaves and the court plasterer Franz Xaver Feuchtmayer the Elder. J. for the stucco marble and sculpting work on the five altars. By 1794, their work was largely complete. Also works by the Landshut sculptor Christian Jorhan the Elder. Ä. can be found in the church. However, it is possible that these were already in the old church and could be saved from the fire. The completion of the work marked the installation of an organ in 1799 and the church portals in 1801 - the organ case and the church doors still exist today. The classical church building was completed shortly before the onset of secularization in Bavaria .
A first major exterior and interior renovation was carried out in 1873 and 1874. Windows made of colored glass were used, which were exchanged for clear windows in 1947. After a new tabernacle was purchased for the choir altar in 1900 , extensive exterior and interior renovations were carried out again between 1901 and 1904, with the shell being painted. In 1913 the neo-baroque painting “ Maria mit Kind ” was created, which is located outside on the north side of the tower. A year later, Leopold Nenninger installed a new organ in the 1799 case.
After the first electrical bells were installed in 1958, which had to be replaced ten years later, the wooden bell cage was stiffened in 1959 with steel fittings . In 1971 the outer facade was renewed and the tower foundation reinforced. Another external renovation with dehumidification of the masonry and static securing of the choir arch was due in 1988 . An extensive interior repairs, which is to mark the beginning of a series of measures in the following years, was carried out in 2017.
architecture
The exterior of the monumental structure is simple and thus follows the ideas of classicism . The rectangular nave merges into the semicircular closed choir without any step . The outside of the church building is structured by double pilaster strips and high arched windows with a curved frame line, above which there are three-pass-shaped ox eyes . The lively outline of the windows still belongs to the Rococo style and refers to the master builders Anton Kogler and Johann Baptist Lethner, who worked in the neighboring Erdinger Land . The ground plan of the southwest tower is rotated by a few degrees to the church structure, because the medieval remainder of the burnt-out church was used here. This square tower basement, which is divided by simply painted corner pilasters, has the oldest surviving structure of the church. Above a circumferential cornice it merges into the newer belfry area , which is provided with pilasters at the sloping corners . A pear-shaped hood by Landshut master carpenter Joseph Stuber forms the upper end , which also refers to the late Rococo.
The east-facing church consists of a five-bay nave, where the yoke is separated in the interior by double pilasters , and the two-bay choir with a semicircular end. While the choir is not set apart from the nave , the interior still appears to be drawn in. This is due to the second U-shaped circular wall, which is located east of the choir arch and is parallel to the outer semicircle. The sacristy is housed between the two ring walls in order to keep the building classicistically simple and to avoid an external extension.
This construction of two U-shaped circular walls is absolutely unique in church construction and emphasizes the special architectural value of the parish church. Above the sacristy there is a gallery which also houses the upper altar, the so-called brotherhood altar Maria of Consolation . A double gallery has been moved into the western nave yoke , which takes up the entire available width and is therefore attached to the slightly angled tower that protrudes into the nave.
The ceiling construction is a flat, segment-arched barrel vault with round incised stab caps that open to the ox eyes described above. The vault is only supported by a wooden slat construction, which is plastered on the underside and hung from the roof structure above . This was probably chosen because of the short construction time and the low stability of the high outer walls, which are only reinforced by flat wall pillars.
Furnishing
Frescoes
The entire interior of the church was painted by the Munich court painter Andreas Seidl in around 1793. The three large ceiling frescoes in the chancel, in the nave and above the organ gallery are particularly impressive . While the paintings themselves are quite colorful, but still much more restrained than in the Rococo, the simple frames of straight lines and segments of circles clearly indicate classicism. In the choir fresco there are numerous angels venerating the Eucharist . This was originally symbolized as a monstrance with a host , but was inexplicably painted over with a brown cloud during a renovation around 1960 . On the ceiling of the nave is a fresco, rich in figures, of the acceptance of the church patron Nikolaus von Myra into heaven. At the bottom of the picture you can see the holy bishop, who is led into heaven by angels. There he is received by the Holy Trinity depicted in the center of the picture . In the upper half of the picture you can see genii with laurel , the crook , the miter and three gold apples as a typical attribute of St. Nicholas of Myra. The third Deckenfresko above the organ, which is surrounded by a circular frame, provides an angel concert . Also as Grisaille executed on a green background gusset images submitted by Andreas Seidl. Several miracles of St. Nicholas of Myra are shown here.
Altars
Furthermore, Seidl created the altar leaves of the four side altars. The large painting on the right choir arch altar, which depicts Saint Anne with Maria and Joachim , bears the signature A. Seidl invenit et pinxit a. 1793 . The top image of the same altar shows St. Francis of Assisi . Its counterpart on the left contains an artistically impressive main picture of the martyrdom of St. Sebastian , the excerpt shows St. Anthony. There are also two side altars on the side walls of the nave. The altar on the south (right) side is dedicated to St. Nicholas of Tolentino , on the north side St. Thomas of Villanova can be seen in the main picture and St. Clare of Assisi in the excerpt . The altar structures, however, were made by the Munich court plasterer Franz Xaver Feuchtmayer the Elder. J. His stucco marble altars show strict linear forms and are thus more reminiscent of early baroque works than of the Rococo style. They are supported by statues of saints on the side by the famous Landshut sculptor Christian Jorhan the Elder. Ä. animated, which are among the top works of the Bavarian late rococo. On the left choir arch altar you can find Laurentius and John the Martyr , on the right choir arch altar Leonhard and Franz Xaver , on the left nave altar Rochus and Florian and on the right nave altar Josef and Joachim . However, the figures on the two southern (right) altars may have been swapped.
There are two more altars in the choir. The lower choir altar fulfills the main liturgical function and therefore contains the tabernacle . A baroque figure of the patron saint Nikolaus von Myra is enthroned on it and was carved in 1727 by a Landshut sculptor from the Hiernle family . Two more figures of Saints Magdalena and Katharina can be seen to the side, which are also likely from Hiernle. In addition, impressive Jorhan figures of the four evangelists can be seen here, each of whose torsos grow out of a mighty rocaille console. The upper choir Altar, which is also fraternity Altar, includes in a central position, a late Gothic grace image of the Lady with the baby Jesus which by a halo is surrounded. The sculpture is impressively illuminated by the central apse window . The miraculous image is flanked by two pairs of pillars that support the altarpiece. In the 1960s, a small painting of the risen Christ was used here instead of a halo . Furthermore, baroque figures of St. Korbinian , the church father Augustine , his mother Monika and the bishop Benno can be seen here.
Other equipment
The round pulpit made of stucco marble also comes from Feuchtmayer and can still be assigned to the Rococo. It is richly decorated with figures of angels and gilded pendants. In addition, the classical confessionals with strict triangular gables by the Landshut carpenter Johann Nepomuk Stöcher are worth mentioning. In 1794 he also made the choir stalls . The likewise classical cheeks of the lay chairs (1793) come from the Velden carpenter Heinrich Hobmann, the Stations of the Cross (1797) from Johann Michael Weidinger from Vagen , the two wooden portals (1801) from the carpenter Joseph Poldinger from Obergangkofen . There are also some grave monuments of the Fraunhofer noble family in the interior . In addition to the elaborate memorial stones for the founder and his wife on the side walls of the nave, a late Gothic red marble epitaph for Teseres, Caspar, Hans and Heinrich Fraunhofer and another Fraunhofer family grave stone from the beginning of the 16th century are of interest.
organ
The organ on the upper gallery was built in 1914 by Leopold Nenninger and Albert Moser from Munich. The cone chests instrument has a pneumatic play and register contracture as well as a free-standing gaming table . It comprises a total of 21 stops on two manuals and pedal . The disposition is as follows:
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- Pairing : II / I, II / P, I / P, Super II / I, Sub II / I
The five-part prospectus still comes from a one-manual organ with twelve registers that Joseph Schweinacher built in 1799 and shows both late baroque and early classicist features.
literature
- Georg Brenninger: Altfraunhofen as an example of a rare classical church interior in Lower Bavaria , 1993
- Sixtus Lampl : Altfraunhofen , Church Guide, 2000
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Parish Altfraunhofen: Our churches . Online at www.erzbistum-muenchen.de. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
- ↑ a b Lampl, pp. 2–9.
- ↑ Lampl, p. 32f.
- ↑ Parish Association Altfraunhofen: Christmas Parish Letter 2017 (PDF; 4.2 MB), p. 10f. Online at www.erzbistum-muenchen.de; accessed on December 24, 2017.
- ↑ a b c Lampl, pp. 14-16.
- ↑ a b c d e f Lampl, pp. 16–24.
- ↑ a b Bavarian organ database online
Coordinates: 48 ° 26 '57.1 " N , 12 ° 10' 8.5" E