St. Rupert (Weißpriach)
The Roman Catholic branch church in Weißpriach im Lungau , consecrated to the first Salzburg bishop St. Rupert , dates back to the early Romanesque period . It receives its supraregional importance through partly Byzantine fresco cycles , which are dated to around 1050–1200. It belongs legally to the parish of Mariapfarr .
location
The church is elevated above the entrance to the Weißpriach valley and, together with the sacristan's house, a few other farmhouses and two bricked troad boxes (granaries), forms the first district of Weißpriach - St. Rupert as seen from Mariapfarr. The church is located on the way to the Oberhüttensattel , which was the most important connection between the Lungau and the Ennstal when the church was built after the Roman road fell into disrepair over the Radstädter Tauern Pass .
history
The origin of the church is unknown, but is likely to date back to around 750, namely in the time of the subjugation of the Alpine Slavs by the Bavarians under their Duke Tassilo III. and go back to the Christianization that began at that time . The numerous walled-in Roman architectural stones show that a cult building must have stood there as early as Roman times, the remains of which were used in the first church building. It was an own church of the Salzburg cathedral provosts, who had extensive properties in this valley and a residential tower as a travel base. The old Tauernstrasse ran through there until around 1130. The church has old frescoes with the legend of Aegidius from around 1110 and a high-quality apse painting in the Byzantine style with Christ in the mandorla and the four evangelist symbols. Some art experts date this painting and thus the building to around 1050.
The Knights of Weißpriach, to whom the cathedral chapter awarded the surrounding property in 1040, expanded the castle and used the church as a castle chapel. The castle was captured by Hungarian mercenaries around 1485 and was left to decay when the Weißpriach family died out around 1500. The most famous offspring was Burkhard von Weißpriach , Archbishop and Prince of Salzburg 1461–1466.
Fresco decorations
In the interior of the church there are frescoes from the period between 950 and the early 13th century above the apse and on the walls of the choir and nave:
Representations
- In the altar vault is depicted Christ appearing for judgment ( Majestas Domini ), surrounded by the four evangelists
- Above the entrance door frescoes from around 1120
- Remnant of a last judgment with expulsion into hell and the torments of the damned
- Above the sacristy door , lower volume: King Wamba on the hunt and Aegidius milking the cow
- Above the sacristy door, upper band: Stephen is stoned and Saint Philip is tied to the cross
- Above the tower door: King Wamba discovers Aegidius in his cave and is instructed
Christ as judge of the world in the apse
The Last Judgment on the north wall
Aegidius legend 1: Milking cow
Aegidius legend 2: King Wamba on the hunt
Restoration history
The wall painting in the apse, dating from the early 13th century, depicting the Majestats Domini, was "exposed" with a hammer in 1949, which amounted to partial destruction: extensive mechanical damage and large parts of the loss occurred. During this time, older wall paintings in Secco technique on a white lime primer were discovered on the north and south walls of the choir square. The smoothed plaster base, to which the lime primer adhered poorly, as well as the sintering of the lime wash over it, saved these paintings from the same damaging “exposure” at that time, as the trial sites that had begun show with total loss. Both in the choir and in the apse the adhesion of the paint layer with the primer to the whitewashing was far better (sintering of the lime layers directly on the painting) than to the substrate.
From 1977 to 1979 the remains of the whitewash and lime veil on the apse painting, which were not removed by tapping in 1949, were removed with a scalpel and magnifying glass. In the choir, the whitewash was systematically removed and the last layer of lime was carefully removed with a scalpel and glass eraser. At the same time, loosening of the lime primer was secured by injecting and applying a brush with polyvinyl acetate emulsion (Vinavil). This procedure proved to be successful and a highly valuable painting from the middle of the 12th century, stylistically comparable to the paintings of the famous antiphonary by St. Peter (Austrian National Library, Vienna), was made visible.
Further equipment
- The church door made of larch posts with the massive iron bolt and the mighty key should still be the original.
- The original Romanesque wooden ceiling was replaced by today's vaulted ceiling in the Baroque period.
- One of the two bells dates from 1552. They were considered particularly effective against bad weather by the people and were called the Rueprechts little dogs . When these barked, the weather witches had to flee from the valley.
- Today's altar is made of a stone from Roman times. Behind it are the statues of the apostles Peter and Paul and the bishops Virgil and Vital.
- The right side altar was the high altar of the church until 1742 and dates from around 1690
- The left side altar comes from the previous building of the church in Mariapfarr-Althofen , the oldest church in the Lungau , and was moved here in 1743. A carved statue of St. Leonhard is holding a chain that is carved from a single piece. It identifies him as the patron saint of cattle and horses.
- The Stations of the Cross pictures were painted in 1768 by the Lederwasch family of painters from Tamsweg .
- The high baroque pulpit is also worth seeing. On the back wall is the picture of the Virgin with the representation of the rest of the former castle (1710).
Picture on the pulpit depicting the former castle
St. Leonhard from the left side altar
Right side altar
Gallery
Sacristan's house
The old sacristan's house next to the church is documented as a cathedral provost in the wall (within the castle wall) in 1300.
literature
- Margarethe Witternigg: Fresco discovery in the St. Rupert branch church in Weisspriach and wall paintings in the choir of the parish church in Maria Pfarr im Lungau. In: Österreichische Zeitschrift für Denkmalpflege 2, 1948, 25–37.
- Description of the church - without further indication of the source on the wooden board in front of the church door - in terms of appearance of more recent date (as of 2008)
- Jos. Schitter (Mariapfarr): Description of the church. Notice in front of the church, written with a typewriter, probably a bit older.
- S. Enzinger: Subsequent exposure of the medieval wall paintings in the subsidiary church of St. Rupert in Weißpriach in Lungau. Restauratorenblätter, 1988. Also available at http://www.baufachinformation.de/denkmalpflege.jsp?md=1988017124712 ( page no longer available , search in web archives )
Web links
Coordinates: 47 ° 10 ′ 7.1 ″ N , 13 ° 42 ′ 22.6 ″ E