St. Nicholas (Elzach)
St. Nikolaus is the Catholic parish church of Elzach .
history
A papal document dated August 5, 1178 contains the first recorded mention of Elzach, which at that time already owned a church. An Elzach priest named Heinrich is named as a witness on a document from 1239, another document from 1251 mentions the "Ecclesia Elza" and for 1360, in addition to the Elzach church, its branches in Prechtal and Biederbach are documented. In 1456 the parish of Elzach was incorporated into the Waldkirch monastery, whereby this monastery was obliged to maintain a clergyman who had to provide this parish. In the 18th century, the previous branches became independent parishes again; In 1789 Oberspitzenbach and Yach , which had previously belonged to Elzach, received their own parishes.
The oldest testimony to the patronage of Nikolaus von Myra comes from the year 1437. Nikolaus von Myra was probably already the patron of the first Elzach church. Remains of a previous building in the form of a brick floor were found in 1936 under the choir of the current Church of St. Nicholas. This is made up of components from three different epochs:
The parish church choir is late Gothic ; its construction began in 1522. It contains five windows decorated with tracery , four of which are two-lane and one three-lane. The struts of the choir are rectangular at the bottom and flattened at the top. A sacristy with square and ogival windows is built on the north side . Their vault keystones bear the coats of arms of the local rule of Rechberg and of Arco. On the south side of the choir there is a round arched gate, also known as the Segentürchen, in the lintel of which the arms of Rechberg and Arco and the year 1522 can also be found. Repair and construction work on the old church is attested for 1551, 1589 and 1614.
The 46 meter high tower of the church dates from the 19th century: It was built between 1824 and 1828 in the Weinbrenner style and replaced a predecessor that had become dilapidated. The new tower was planned by district architect Kunz from Freiburg . It bears a double cross, which comes from the Abbey Church Ettenheimmünster , and contains a ringing with six bells.
The nave was rebuilt after the Thirty Years War . It had a mesh vault made of stucco and was supported by buttresses. In 1957/58 it was replaced by a new building and two side aisles were added. The new consecration took place on September 6, 1958, and an altar was consecrated.
The church was renovated in 1978/79 and was given a new altar on this occasion.
description
The outer facade of the south aisle bears a Nikolaus fresco by Erwin Krumm . It shows the rescue of castaways by the saint. The south side of the tower is adorned with a crucifix made of sandstone ; the work of art was created in 1887. A copy of an Immaculate by Johann Christian Wentzinger is located above the main portal .
The three-aisled nave receives its light through arched windows and a light arcade in the central nave. It has a coffered ceiling and mighty arcades. The choir is connected by a triumphal arch; the sacristy can be reached through an ogival gate. The keystones of the net vault in the choir bear reliefs of the Mother of God with the baby Jesus , St. Margaret , St. Nicholas and the coats of arms of the local rule of Rechberg and of Arco as well as that of the barons of Schwarzenberg. A sacrament house stands on a winding pillar, supported by angel sputtles. A high pyramid rises above the rectangular framed sacrament niche, which in turn is provided with the coats of arms of those of von Rechberg and von Arco. Under these coats of arms are two younger figures depicting the Savior and the Mother of God. The pyramid ends with a finial . This sacrament house, probably made in the Freiburg Münsterbauhütte, is one of the most magnificent in Germany.
Ten glass paintings on the windows are probably based on designs by Hans Baldung Grien and were created in the workshop of Hans Gitschmann von Rappoltstein in 1524/25. Pictured are Saint George fighting the dragon, the founder Martin von Rechberg with his lion coat of arms, Saint Nicholas with the prisoner and the Elzach city arms, Maria with the child in a ray mandorla , Saint Margaret with the cross staff and the dragon, St. George as a rider and St. Christopher . Two donors, Counts Konrad and Georg von Tübingen-Lichteneck, are depicted with their coats of arms at the feet of Georg and Christophorus. Konrad and Georg von Tübingen-Lichteneck were sons of Agathe von Arco from their first marriage. In her second marriage she married Martin von Rechberg. Further window paintings show the death of Mary, the Descent from the Cross and other donor figures and coats of arms. The windows above the side doors of the nave date back to 1524 and show the motifs Ecce homo and Mater Dolorosa as well as the Countess Arco. There is also a glass painting that shows an Elz valley woman in traditional costume. Fragments of writing that are inserted in the two windows above the side doors can hardly be read except for the year 1524.
The church has a high altar from the Baroque period . It is said to come from the Augustinian monastery in Oberndorf am Neckar and came to Elzach around 1805. The altarpiece shows a proclamation of Mary. In the gable, the eye of God and the globe can be seen, surrounded by putti and a halo and crowned by God the Father. A rotating tabernacle of the altarpiece is flanked by the figures of St. Bishop Martin and a saint of the order as well as by reliquary tablets. The altar is decorated with bands and garlands. It is unknown who created this work.
The side altars are dated to the end of the 16th century and are said to come from Ettenheimmünster. They show painting using the dab technique. Each of its leaves is composed of two panels of paintings, which may come from the earlier Gothic high altar. The left side altar shows the marriage of Mary and the Visitation, the right the birth of Christ and the circumcision of the Lord. The excerpt from the left altar contains a painting depicting St. Fridolin with Ursus, St. Judas Thaddäus, St. Anne herself, and St. Theresa of Avila . In the excerpt from the right side altar you can see St. Catherine, St. Francis Xavier, St. James the Elder and St. Barbara. The left side altar is dedicated to Klaus von Flüe and St. Wendelin , the second patrons of the church. Both are represented figuratively, but Klaus von Flüe is modern. The baroque Wendelin statue comes from the Wendelskapelle in the Elzach suburb, which was demolished in 1811. On the pillars of this altar are Abbot Gallus with the bear and a saint of the order.
The right side altar is adorned with a Madonna, which is estimated to date from the 16th century. A figure of the Apostle John, which is located above the altar painting, stood in a niche in the city wall until 1958. On the pillars of the right side altar are Saints Joseph and Anthony of Padua. Two coats of arms come from an earlier altar, indicating the local rule of Greuth and von Fischer. It is not known who created the sculptures on the side altars.
The chairs in the choir have been partially renewed. It shows the coat of arms of popes and archbishops from several decades. Early Baroque procession poles from the Elzach guilds are attached to the stalls in the nave .
The grave slab of John III. von Schwarzenberg († 1377) continued to be used as an altar stone. While the outline of the Schwarzenberg coat of arms can still be clearly seen, the inscription has been removed. The year LXXVII can still be seen hinting at. John III von Schwarzenberg was probably buried in the church. His grave slab is now in the back in the left aisle.
Also in the left aisle is a baroque font with an Anabaptist group from the 17th century. Behind it there is a crucifix made of stone pine . It dates from around 1680 and probably came to Elzach from the Alpine region. In the left aisle there is also a Pietà from around 1900, which was made in the Dettlinger sculptor's workshop in Freiburg.
In the right aisle you can see a baroque statue of Nicholas of Myra in a wreath of rays and clouds, surrounded by putti. It dates from around 1750.
The early baroque pulpit has rich figural decorations. Four church fathers can be seen in niches on the parapet, the four evangelists on the sound cover and, as the coronation, John the Baptist with the Lamb of God and the flag of the cross. The plastic ornamentation of the pulpit is attributed to the circle of the Schupp in Villingen, the Rappenecker from Schönenbach and Adam Faller .
On the walls of the aisle there are four figures of the Swabian Baroque around 1750 on consoles: Petrus, Paulus, Augustinus and Thomas von Aquin. They originally belonged to the high altar as flanking figures. The couples Petrus and Paulus as well as Augustine and Thomas Aquinas probably come from different workshops. Baroque oil paintings from around 1774 can be found in the back of the aisles. They probably come from a member of the Winter family of painters from Waldkirch and represent stations of the cross.
At the very back of the right aisle is the old font from the 15th century, which was made of red sandstone . It grows out of a shaft decorated with angel heads in the Renaissance style and bears the date 1480 as well as a stonemason's mark and the heavily weathered coat of arms of Baron Raphael von Reischach and his wife Benigna von Thürheim. The couple married in 1575. It is possible that the baptismal font was made from an old column capital.
Behind this old font there is a crucifixion group on the back wall of the right aisle, the assistant figures of which may come from Adam Winterhalter's workshop . In the far back of the left aisle there is a brother Konrad from 1937, who was created by Josef Tränkle .
The church has an organ from 1962. It was built in Überlingen by the company X. Mönch Söhne. The instrument has 38 registers and around 2700 pipes .
The ringing consists of six bells, two of which date from the 15th century: the Nikolausglocke was cast in 1463, the chapel bell in 1472. The other four bells, consecrated in 1957, come from Schilling in Heidelberg.
literature
- Josef Weber, Elzach St. Nikolaus , Munich / Zurich 1981 (= Schnell, art guide No. 1283)
Web links
- Church of St. Nikolaus at www.kath-oberes-elztal.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ Weber 1981, p. 4
- ↑ a b Weber 1981, p. 6
- ↑ Weber 1981, p. 7
- ↑ Weber 1981, p. 7 f.
- ↑ Weber 1981, p. 10
- ↑ Weber 1981, p. 3
Coordinates: 48 ° 10 ′ 25 ″ N , 8 ° 4 ′ 14 ″ E