St. Sebald am Heiligenstein
St. Sebald am Heiligenstein is a Roman Catholic pilgrimage church in the Upper Austrian market town of Gaflenz in the Steyr-Land district .
The branch church of the parish Gaflenz , built in the Gothic style, is located on the summit of the steeply sloping Heiligenstein ( 782 m above sea level ). The pilgrimage church is the only church in Austria consecrated to St. Sebaldus of Nuremberg .
history
The Heiligenstein ridge between Gaflenz and Weyer has various features that are important for the establishment of a place of worship: a rock formation on the summit of a steep, densely forested mountain, a small rock cave and a spring that lies slightly below. It is therefore assumed that there was a sanctuary or place of worship there in pre-Christian times. It has not been established whether the Lords of Gaflenz had their residence there in the High Middle Ages .
The Sebald legend reports that Sebald was a miraculous hermit who lived in a small cave for a long time on the way from Rome to Nuremberg . The extensive trade relations of the Nuremberg merchants are well known. Since Sebald is said to have worked primarily in Nuremberg and is also buried there, the custom of Sebald veneration found its way from there to Regensburg , Schwäbisch Gmünd , Bayreuth , Bamberg , Denmark and also Gaflenz and Weyer. The close trade relations between the iron forge town of Weyer and the trading city of Nuremberg could have been decisive for the transfer of the Sebald cult to the Heiligenstein. For a long time, the Nuremberg steel traders covered their needs with iron from Innerberg, today iron ore in Styria , which was forged into steel in Weyer and Gaflenz.
A missal created around 1160 in the Lambach Abbey contains a later entry that the chapel "ad sanctum lapidem" was founded on August 29, 1413 by Auxiliary Bishop Andreas I. Tallaci († February 25, 1430 in Engelszell Abbey ) in honor of all saints, but especially the Saint Sebald was consecrated. This happened during the tenure of Passau Bishop Georg von Hohenlohe , Abbot Florian Tanpeck von Garsten and Pastor Nikolaus von Gaflenz. In this consecration note it was also mentioned that in the altar there were relics of the handkerchief of Veronica , of the apostle Andrew , of St. Constantine (martyr), from the place of the apparition of the Holy Spirit to the apostles , the ten thousand martyrs , the soldier martyrs , the bishops Udalrich and Alexander , the confessor Paulinus , the martyrs Christophorus and Pankratius , the virgins Katharina , Barbara , Cäcilia , Margaretha and Erentrudis , as well as the eleven thousand virgins are walled in.
From 1425, the year of Sebald's canonization , the worship of Sebald experienced a particularly strong boom. An indication of the popularity of St. Sebald among the population of Gaflenz is the frequent use of the baptismal name Sebald. In a tax register of the Weyer parish from 1554, 15 percent of male persons are called Sebald.
The influx of pilgrims also continued during the Reformation in the second half of the 16th century, when a large part of the region's inhabitants were Protestant . Protestant citizens, many of them from Steyr , also often celebrated the service at Heiligenstein. Jakob Zettl, a citizen from Steyr, wrote in his diary on July 3, 1626 on the occasion of a visit to the Heiligenstein of "a large crowd of people".
In 1665 the bell tower was built, which was rebuilt 26 years later and got its present appearance in 1733. Soon after, the baroque Sebaldi chapel with the grotto was built. The existence of an organ in the Sebalduskirche can be traced back to the 17th century. In 1670 a shelf was renovated. The organ was repaired in 1709, 1763, 1884 and 1939.
So much money was made with the church at Heiligenstein that credit transactions could be carried out with it in the 18th century. At the same time the Calvary with five stations from Gaflenz to the Heiligenstein was built. In 1707 the construction of the sacristan's house began so that the pilgrims and pilgrims as well as the sacristan, the so-called hermit, had a shelter. In 1732 the old organ was transferred from Heiligenstein to the parish church in Gaflenz. In 1785 a new organ could be purchased.
In the course of the Enlightenment in the 18th century, the pilgrimage system was severely affected. Emperor Joseph II intended to close all pilgrimage churches that were not also parish churches and use their assets to build new parish churches for additional parishes. According to the relevant ordinance, the church at Heiligenstein should also have been closed in 1783. However, the continuation was approved by a decision of October 5, 1785. In return, 100 guilders had to be donated to a charity every year . The remaining funds had to be given to the provincial governments of Upper Austria.
The French Wars also demanded a lot from St. Sebald am Heiligenstein. In the course of the Second Coalition War , the community of Gaflenz was granted a loan of 200 guilders from the church treasury of the Heiligenstein in 1801 to pay the contribution required by the French occupation . In 1806, during the Third Coalition War, French soldiers came to Heiligenstein and severely affected the church. In 1810 all of the church silver had to be delivered to them. The war damage was repaired in 1811 and 1812. The repair work came to an end in 1813 with the purchase of the 600 kg bell. In the following time, the church was somewhat forgotten, in 1832 the old organ from the parish church Weyer was installed, in 1841 its case was restored and until 1843 the pilgrimage was revived by the Gaflenz pastor Constantin Zwirtmayr (1830-1856). The interior of the church was renovated during the same period.
In 1925, on the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the canonization of St. Sebald, the citizens of the region donated a new stained glass window that was destroyed in the Second World War. During this war, the two bells from Heiligenstein were also removed as a " metal donation from the German people " for war purposes. In 1949 a new bell weighing 250 kg was consecrated, the old one returned in 1950. It was sunk in the port of Hamburg . The Soviet occupation soldiers caused great damage in the church in 1945: doors and windows were smashed, statues were thrown from their bases and shot, the organ was destroyed, the floor torn up and the furnishings of the sacristy demolished. In the tabernacle four bullet holes are seen from this period. In 1948 a pilgrimage to St. Sebald am Heiligenstein took place for the first time after the war, the Hollensteiner Pilgrimage. It was held as a field mass in front of the church. In 1949 the church and sacristan's house were restored. In 1951, the Sebaldifest was reopened with around 2000 pilgrims.
The Upper Austrian provincial government approved the municipality of Gaflenz on 4 April 1955, the management of a municipal coat of arms. This also contains the church on the Heiligenstein as a motif. In 1984/85 the exterior of the church and the Sebaldi chapel were renovated. A common concern of the pilgrims is the desire for a husband and children.
Building description
The pilgrimage church of St. Sebaldus is a late Gothic cubic building with a high hipped roof from the second half of the 15th century. The 5/8 choir was created in the early 15th century. The sacristy is connected to the choir on the north side . The oratory above the sacristy can be reached from the outside via a stone spiral staircase. The south portal, designed as a shoulder arch, has a late Gothic bar frame. To the west of the nave is an equally wide porch , the so-called arbor, the vault of which collapsed at the beginning of the 19th century. The church is enclosed on three sides by a cemetery wall, which was re-covered with wooden boards in 1969. In the southwest area of the cemetery wall there is an entrance portal with the black inscription: “Come to me! I'll give you rest. ”In the niche above.
tower
The copperplate Heyliger Stain by Andreas Matthäus Wolfgang shows that the bell tower built in 1665 was originally designed as a roof turret. In 1691, today's tower was built in the southeast corner of the choir made of tuff stone and in 1692 it was equipped with a sundial by the Garsten court painter Johann Georg Staindorfer . In the years 1732 to 1733 the tower was raised to around 20 meters and fitted with a baroque spire above the bell chamber. The bell house contains two bells.
Church interior
The church is a twelve meter long and ten meter wide three-aisled hall. Light enters the church through the two-lane tracery windows in the north and south walls of the nave. The ribs of the net vault start with a short shoulder on the two octagonal pillars and each end on the walls in round brackets , each with a downward-hanging rosette . In the central nave of the three-bay, four-pillar hall there is a central Heiliggeistloch . The side aisles have elongated mesh vaults with diamonds lying lengthways. In the case of an arched rib vault, the arched ribs run onto semicircular wall pillar services. Along the staircase there are red chalk inscriptions from the 16th century.
The exit to the lower church is located under the northwestern side aisle yoke. The lower church is an elongated three-bay room with a ribbed vault .
The church floor consists of a screed that is rare in this composition . The surface was originally sanded smooth. According to a laboratory analysis by the Federal Monuments Office , the screed consists largely of light gray dolomite like the rock in front of the church, of white marble , dried lime and dolomite lime as a binding agent. Organic additives were casein and curd . The steps to the choir are made of conglomerate rock .
The triumphal arch is richly profiled and separates the choir from the nave. The 5/8 choir has two bays and is vaulted with star ribs. Originally the diamond star was six-part. However, when the main altar was being erected, a rib was removed. The ribs are drawn down on the walls and rest on polygonal consoles.
One of the two windows in the apse shows the remains of a late Gothic stained glass from 1470 with the scene of the Mount of Olives . An iron-studded gate with a keyhole frame leads from the choir into the late-Gothic, cross-vaulted sacristy.
During the interior renovation in 1991, it was found that the church has a well-preserved late Gothic and early Baroque fresco decoration. Since it has a baroque overall appearance, it was not exposed. The room was painted off-white. The late Gothic frescoes are hidden under eight layers of paint.
Furnishing
Most of the furnishings were built between 1751 and 1777. The church is thus influenced by the late Baroque .
High altar
The high altar was built in 1776 and 1777. In the middle there is a life-size statue of St. Sebald in front of a golden halo. The figure stands on a tabernacle structure with rococo decorations and white frame. This was made in Seitenstetten in 1778. The architrave is supported by Corinthian columns and pilasters . The coronation of Mary is depicted above this, floating on clouds . The statues on the high altar were created by the sculptor Johann Jakob Sattler from St. Florian , the altar structure itself was created in the workshop of the Garsten court carpenter.
In 1992 the first version of the altar (black on white structure) by Franz. X. Gürtler from Steyr was exposed again. The overpainting was removed in the course of the restoration in 1992. It consisted of black lacquer with white veins. The high altar was heavily infested with the wood worm , so the wood had to be fully strengthened in the course of the restoration. A partial restoration of the altar has been proven for the year 1834.
pulpit
In 1751 the court carpenter Matthias Pokorny from Garsten made the black marbled pulpit . On the cover is a half-figure of St. Sebald floating on clouds. The pulpit was re- gilded in 1842 and 1992 .
Side altars
The Garsten court cabinetmaker Matthias Pokorny created the two side altars in the year 1754. On the altar of the left side of the altar is the manna rain , which in the picture of Last Supper shown. The baroque cover image shows St. Joseph , the altarpiece on the right side altar the sacrifice of Melchizedech . The top picture contains the crucifixion of Jesus with Maria , Johannes and Maria Magdalena . On the right edge of the picture, Roman soldiers are distributing the clothes of Jesus among themselves. The baroque front image shows Saint Anthony. Originally the side altars had a black frame. The first overpainting was a dark marbling with light paint splatters. The second overpainting was done with blackened shellac . In 1992, in the course of a restoration, the first overpainting was exposed again. The exposure of the original version would not have been possible without losses.
Picture cycle
On the north and south walls of the nave, the legend of the Sebald is depicted in seven large-format oil paintings from the 18th century. Some of these were painted over several times.
The four pictures on the north wall show the life of St. Sebald. The first picture shows St. Sebald's farewell to his wife. The second picture shows how he receives permission to preach from Pope Gregory II . In this picture, next to a cross bearer and a cardinal, Sebald's companions Willibald and Wunibald are shown in the background . The third picture shows his translating across the Danube near Regensburg on his outstretched coat. In the fourth picture, 20 years after his death, you can see Sebald lying in the coffin. A prankster found himself at his grave and plucked the dead man's beard. Thereupon Sebald dealt him such a violent blow that he went blind in one eye.
On the south wall hang three pictures with the miracles of the saint. The fifth picture comes from the painter Christoph Auhueber . This work, created in Bad Hall in 1711, shows Sebald at his deposit . According to legend, one day a farmer went to see the hermit in his cell and complained about his suffering. His draft oxen had gotten along well and got lost in the forest. Since dusk was already breaking and the search was in vain for the whole day, Sebald encouraged him and ordered him to continue to scour the forest with his hands raised. His hands began to shine in the forest and soon afterwards he found his oxen again.
The sixth picture shows the healing of a blind wagoner. He bought fish for the sick Sebald at the Nuremberg market. Since the burgrave had forbidden this, however, he blinded the Wagner. Thereupon Sebald visited the place of execution with the Wagner, lifted his eyes from the floor, put them back on, and so gave the Wagner eyesight again.
The seventh picture shows how two dead children are brought back to life by the intercession of St. Sebald.
In 1842 the legend painter Joseph Gabriel Frey from Weyer painted over four of these legend pictures. In 1847 the remaining pictures were painted over by Joseph and Ignaz Frey . In 1975 Theodor Bohdanowicz restored six legend pictures.
People's Altar
On the occasion of the completion of the interior renovation in 1993, a new popular altar was inaugurated for the Sebaldifest on August 22, 1993. Franz Salcher provided the design, Alfons Großberger from Gaflenz designed it artistically. The altar shows the motif "The burning bush" from the book Exodus , the 2nd book of Moses, and symbolizes the encounter between Moses and God Yahweh . The popular altar should make it clear to the visitor that he too can experience the presence of God in it.
Further inventory
On both sides of the high altar there are console figures on the walls of the choir polygon . On the Gospel side (left side) there is a baroque figure of St. Berthold von Garsten or St. Benedict , on the epistle side a late Gothic figure of St. Sebald. This 78 cm statue was made in the Soft Style around 1430. The figure of the saint is bearded and wears a pilgrim hat . In her left hand she holds a model of a two-tower church, in her right a pilgrim's staff . The pilgrim's cloak falls from the right arm in rich folds and forms an ornamental hem. She carries a pilgrim's bag on her back . This also includes the strap buckle on the chest side. The robe forms tube folds below the zingulum. In 1967 and 1979 the statue was restored. The late Gothic statue of Sebaldus, carved around 1430, the baroque overpainting of which was removed on the occasion of an art exhibition in Nuremberg, is now in its original state for safety reasons in the parish church of Gaflenz. In its place is a replica made by the sculptor Adelsberger in the Sebalduskirche on Heiligenstein.
In the southern area of the presbytery there is a baroque Pietà in a shrine in a niche above the tower entrance. The wrought iron communion grille was created in 1847. On the front pillars of the nave there are two baroque canopy altars with neo-Gothic figures of St. Leonhard and St. Antonius. Both figures date from 1896. At the north and south portal there are figures of St. Sebastian and St. Andrew . The two confessionals under the gallery were originally in the parish church of Gaflenz, but were transferred to the Heiligenstein in 1992.
Bells
In the bell-room of the tower there are two bells , both of which are still being rung by hand.
The larger one with a diameter of 110 cm weighs 600 kg and is tuned to f '. It is consecrated to Saint Sebald and Saint Florian and bears the inscriptions “sit nomen domini benedictum” (translated: “The name of the Lord be praised”) and “ Casp poured me on the cost of the parish of Gafflenz . Domi. Staffelmayr in Steyr 1814 ”. This bell had to be given in 1942 as a metal donation for armaments purposes for the Second World War . It was sunk in the port of Hamburg towards the end of the Second World War and, after its discovery, was brought back to the Heiligenstein in 1950.
The smaller bell with a diameter of 80 cm weighs 250 kg and is tuned to d ". It is consecrated to St. Anthony and St. Leonhard and is a new casting from the rubble of an older bell. This was thrown down the steep slope in 1945 and crashed at the foot of the Heiligenstein in eleven parts.
Objects outside the church
Sebaldi Chapel
Just below the northwest corner of the pilgrimage church is a small baroque chapel. This was built in 1691 over a rock niche with a stone reclining figure of St. Sebald. Legend has it that Sebald lived as a hermit in this “rock cave”. His "camp" is cordoned off by an artistically forged grating. This was forged in 1693 by Philipp Schwälbl , a locksmith from Weyer, and painted red and green by the painter Brösinger from Waidhofen an der Ybbs . In 1793 a sculptor from Garsten created the crucifix that crowns the grotto. Above it is a Latin chronogram with the year 1692: "Antum, sub quo santus Sebaldus peregrinus quie verat". (German translation: "Grotto in which the holy pilgrim Sebald rested.")
On the ceiling of the chapel there are frescoes by the Garsten court painter Johann Georg Staindorfer and his son. The fresco in the hanging dome shows a scene from the legend of Sebaldus: On the pilgrimage, Sebaldus and his companions were once very hungry. After much prayer, an angel of God appeared to them and fed them. In the picture, Saint Sebald kneels waiting for the angel's food, while Willibald and Wunibald together with Sebald's servant Dionysios sit in an arbor waiting for food. The miracle is essentially an altered version of the story of the prophet Elijah . In the corners of the vault, angels wear the attributes of St. Sebald: pilgrim hat, pilgrim staff and pilgrim cloak. The fourth angel shows the signs of missionary activity and the purity of the soul: cross and lily. These symbols are juxtaposed with the symbols of worldly power - crown, scepter, brocade and the Order of the Golden Fleece. The chapel was last renovated in 1987/88.
In 1702 a sculptor from Weyer created a grave Christ. A burial chapel was built above the Sebaldi chapel for this purpose.
Calvary
During the 17th and 18th centuries, many places of pilgrimage were designed with pictures, including St. Sebald am Heiligenstein. In the first half of the 18th century, an extensive calvary with scenes of the painful rosary was built on the steep footpath from Gaflenz to the Heiligenstein . In 1701 the stations “Mount of Olives”, “Flagellation” and “Carrying the Cross” were created. The chapel shrine "Crown of Thorns" was created in 1738 and in 1739 was provided with figures by a sculptor from Weyer. The crucifixion group on the southern wall of the churchyard, created in 1743, was made by the same artist.
literature
- Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993.
- Peter Pfarl: Pilgrimage routes in Upper Austria . Verlagsgruppe Styria, Vienna, Graz, Klagenfurt 2010, ISBN 978-3-7012-0050-4 , p. 153 ff .
- Erwin Hainisch: DEHIO manual. The art monuments of Austria. Upper Austria . 5th edition. Verlag Anton Schroll, Vienna 1971, p. 113 f .
- Elisabeth Winklmayr u. a .: The sacristan's house on Heiligenstein and its development into a snack bar. Festschrift for the 300th anniversary of the Mesnerhaus 1707–2007 . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 2007.
- Marktgemeinde Gaflenz (ed.): 850 years Gaflenz 1140–1990 ; 1990
Web links
- Diocese of Linz: Heiligenstein near Gaflenz: pilgrimages for a life partner
- Market town of Gaflenz: hiking trails - Heiligenstein
- Austria Forum: Legends from the St. Sebald am Hl. Stein area
- Tiscover: Sebaldikirche am Heiligenstein - Ennstal National Park
- Kraftort.at: Places of power and cult places in Upper Austria
- weyer.de.com: Postcard collection Heiligenstein
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Erwin Garstenauer : Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 5 ff .
- ↑ Chronicle of Gaflenz (accessed on August 8, 2013) (PDF; 40.5 MB)
- ↑ Elisabeth Winklmayr u. a .: The sacristan's house on Heiligenstein and its development into a snack bar. Festschrift for the 300th anniversary of the Mesnerhaus 1707–2007 . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 2007, p. 5 ff .
- ↑ Peter Pfarl: pilgrimage routes in Upper Austria . Verlagsgruppe Styria, Vienna, Graz, Klagenfurt 2010, ISBN 978-3-7012-0050-4 , p. 153 ff .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 11 f .
- ↑ a b Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 12 f .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 13 ff .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 15 .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 15th f .
- ↑ a b Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 16 .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 20th ff .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 26th f .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 24 f .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 28 .
- ↑ Erwin Garstenauer: Sankt Sebald am Heiligenstein near Gaflenz . Parish Office Gaflenz, Gaflenz 1993, p. 31 .
Coordinates: 47 ° 52 ′ 55 ″ N , 14 ° 42 ′ 7 ″ E
