City parish church of Steyr

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View from the Tabor from

The Roman Catholic parish church of Steyr is consecrated to St. Aegidius and St. Koloman . It was built in the 15th century in Gothic style and is the most important sacred building in the city of Steyr ( Upper Austria ).

history

Probable view during the Gothic renovation. Schedelsche Weltchronik , excerpt from Bl. CCLXXVI

According to Manfred Brandl , who examined the early development of the city of Steyr, the history of the first church building in Steyr can be traced back to around 1100. The church was secured by name in 1275 in connection with a property dispute. In a town fire in 1303, the church was affected. The histographer Valentin Preuenhueber reports that around 1300 the branch church was elevated to a parish.

Choir floor plan, vault design by Laurenz Spenning

The economic boom of the city in the 15th century and the resulting rapidly growing community resulted in a complete new construction of the existing parish church of St. Giles and Koloman. In 1443 the Viennese cathedral builder Hans Puchsbaum was commissioned to build the new late Gothic church, under whose direction the shell of the choir was completed. After Puchsbaum's death, his successor Laurenz Spenning took over the vaulting of the choir and the installation of the tower, which was not initially planned in this form. Mert Kranschach , who was involved in the construction of the nave after 1477 , was charged with embezzlement of funds in 1482 and instead the continuation of the construction was entrusted to the chairman of the Admonter Bauhütte, Wolfgang Tenk , who was followed by Hans Schwettichauer after his death in 1513.

In 1522, in the 79th year after the construction of the choir began (not already in 1479!), As the Steyr chronicler Valentin Preuenhueber writes, the church building, which was not yet finished and prepared for the vault , burned down during the city fire of Steyr. A fire that broke out in the Stadtbad (Stadt-Baad) not only destroyed the surrounding houses, but was also carried to the parish church by a "strong wind": This fire got into the wood and scaffolding, and burned everything, the roof in the church , most of the altars, old epitaphs, windows and paintings; the very beautiful sermon chair adorned with artful works; All bells bought at great expense [...]

In the second half of the 16th century, Protestant preachers worked at the parish church of Steyr after the citizens of the city had switched to Martin Luther's teaching . In the fifty years of Protestant influence, the western vestibule was built, which reached up to the city wall. At the turn of the 17th century, Benedictine monks from Garsten dominated the further development of the parish church. The church was converted to baroque style . 1630, the western part of the church received a lunettes vault, 1655 was the pews and in 1688 created Carl Ritter von Reslfeld the altarpiece for the high altar. After the Abbey of Garsten was abolished, diocesan priests from Linz took over pastoral care.

Adalbert Stifter , as the state's monument conservator, promoted the neo-Gothic renovation of the interior. The baroque furnishings were largely removed in order to match the Gothic character of the formal language. After the fire of the spire in 1876, today's neo-Gothic attachment was made from stone blocks in 1889 according to plans by the Viennese cathedral builder and the builder of the Vienna city hall Friedrich von Schmidt . The old cross has been erected on the church tower since 1961. The war memorial on the outside of the vestibule to the west was designed by Franz Koppelhuber , the bronze figure of the Archangel Michael is a design by Josef Franz Riedel and was made by Adolf Wagner von der Mühl . The ceremonial unveiling was on May 7, 1933. Since 1982, a cube erected in front of the memorial by the local stonemason, Helmut Buric, has also commemorated the victims of the Second World War.

In the years 1983 to 1993 the outside of the church was restored and the appearance of the former cemetery wall with the many epitaphs was improved. After taking stock from 2007, the interior restoration began in 2009/10. This concerned the sacristy, the stained glass windows, the historical roof structure and the Gothic yokes. As in the 19th century, the interior was given a tint of white and yellow. This work was initially completed by the end of November 2015.

Historical pictures
Detail from a city view from 1554
The tower in 1688 (drawing by Kulstrunk , late 1893)
City wall at today's Brucknerplatz (before 1848)
South view before the fire in 1876
Northern view before 1876
Fire of the spire
Central nave before the interior restoration begins (August 2010)

  • The western porch

  • The old tower cross

  • The war memorial

  • Scaffolding in the rear central nave, entrance area (July 2013)

  • Scaffolding in the nave at the approach of the Gothic vault (July 2015)

Anton Bruckner

From 1884 Anton Bruckner stayed in Steyr for the summer and lived in the old parsonage. There he composed parts of the 8th and 9th symphonies from 1886 to 1894 , a memorial plaque attached in 1908 commemorates this. The reconstruction of the Chrismann organ from 1774 to 78 also goes back to Bruckner . The Bruckner memorial in front of the church dates back to 1898 - Steyr thus set the composer's first memorial. The bust was made by Victor Tilgner , the base and the other accessories by Fritz Zerritsch . During the Second World War, the memorial was removed and re-erected in September 1945.

  • Bust on Brucknerplatz

  • Memorial plaque at the old rectory, directly opposite the church

  • The sacristan's house with the Brucknerstiege

Building description

The central nave with a view of the high altar

The entrance into the church through the dark vestibule into the wide-opening, raised Gothic construction of the interior gives an idea of ​​the architectural and art-historical wealth of the complex. The conception of the chancel by Hanns Puchspaum is particularly impressive.

The three-aisled hall church with side aisles of almost the same width has no transept. The four-bay nave with the western gallery yoke in the central nave is vaulted with a pointed spear cap barrel, the side aisles have cross vaults . The three-aisled, three-bay choir with a rich ribbed vault connects seamlessly to the nave . The end of the choir has a 5/8 end in the central nave and a 3/8 end in the side aisles. Continuous bundle pillars with statue consoles support the vaulting of the house.

The 80 meter high six-sided north tower connects the nave and choir. It carries a neo-Gothic tower and rises up from a star-rib vaulted tower hall. Richly stepped buttresses on the choir form a static structure. The transverse west building takes up the wide passage hall, which was built in 1522. From it two entrance gates lead into the church with the organ gallery on the upper floor. The entrance gates are inscribed in round arches by curtain arches. In the two western bays of the north aisle, consoles support a gallery .

On the north exterior of the church, facing Pfarrgasse, there is a five-sided vestibule with a double portal with a ribbed vaulted canopy . The stepped, richly profiled, ogival gates are framed by door frames with curtain arches. Above the left portal there is a tympanum relief made of Aflenz sand-lime stone from around 1526 with the death and coronation of Mary. The room above the right portal is empty. In the baldachin-crowned niches there are sandstone figures of Saint Agnes , St. Jacob and St. Dorothea , (also Aflenz sand-lime brick) these were made around 1410 and ascribed to the master of Großlobming . The figure of St. Johannes is a neo-Gothic work by Franz Erler from 1900. Two Gothic south gates form further entrances. The west is in a vaulted vestibule, the east leads to the choir and also has a vestibule.

Construction cracks
The ground plan after Hermann von Riewel
Longitudinal section according to Riewel
Cross-section according to Riewel

  • The north tower

  • Choir of the left aisle

  • Choir of the right aisle

  • North porch

  • Tympanum relief

  • Saint Agnes

  • South porch

Furnishing

The parish church is rich in art treasures, these range from the remarkable glass windows, the richly decorated tabernacle , the valuable ironwork, the baptismal font and the pews . The altar , pulpit , side altars and pillar statues date from the period of regotization between 1854 and 1857 (design and execution, including Engelbert Westreicher ).

The neo-Gothic high altar by Fidelis Schönlaub from Munich was consecrated in 1856. The new conception of the altar resulted in the integration of the Gothic tabernacle on the left side of the central apse . The little door of the sacrament house with six different openwork swirl patterns is remarkable. Opposite is the priest's bench with the Gothic canopy. On the west gallery was the organ built by Franz Xaver Krismann , on which Anton Bruckner also played. In the left aisle there is a picture of Saint Sebastian by Carl Ritter von Reslfeld on the back wall . On the wall above the baptistery hangs the altarpiece, created by the same artist for the high altar, depicting the Adoration of the Magi. The center of the baptistery in the tower hall is the baptismal font, which is made of tin plates over a wooden core with relief and rich ornamentation. The sacristy door is a work from Nuremberg from 1470 with the coat of arms of the city of Nuremberg, the imperial eagle with a crowned lion.

A special feature is the late baroque iron sunflower epitaph, which was formerly in the west crypt. It is reminiscent of the smallpox epidemic in 1703.

  • The high altar

  • The Gothic tabernacle in the choir

  • Saint Sebastian

  • The former altarpiece

  • Detail of the church stalls

  • Sunflower epitaph

organ

  • Organ of the parish church

  • The old baroque case of the organ in Reichenthal

The organ work comes from J. Pircher ( Steinach / Brenner ) and was created in 1962. Pirchner took over the pipe inventory and the neo-Gothic case from the predecessor. This predecessor was a conversion of a baroque Krismann organ carried out by Mauracher in 1893 from 1774–78, which, on the advice of Anton Bruckner (see above), had received some additional stops and a neo-Gothic case . The old baroque case was then brought to Reichenthal in the Mühlviertel.

The first large organ came from the master Hans Lauss (1478) and remained in the church until the fire in 1522. The successor to the imperial organ builder Jacob (1544) was rebuilt several times until it was replaced by Franz Xaver Krismann's organ from 1774 .

Stained glass

Many of the original glass windows fell victim to the fire of March 18, 1522, and many of the remainder were given in around 1800 to furnish the pleasure palace in Laxenburg. These works are in the local chapel and the knight's crypt. After the fittings had been completed, surplus panes were returned, such as those of the Laxenburg window (right aisle, south wall). Apart from the Renaissance window with the death and coronation of the Virgin Mary, which is also on the south wall, the rest of the windows date from the 19th century.

Laxenburg window

The oldest works of art are in the Laxenburg window on the south wall, to the right of the main portal. It is a collection of glass painting fragments from the beginning of the Gothic to the end of the 15th century. The most valuable pieces in it are three panes from around 1300 depicting Duke Leopold , the risen Christ and Margravine Agnes. The garment hems already show the early Gothic style with fine lines. These three panes originally come from the Capella Speciosa in Klosterneuburg and after they were demolished they were only brought to Laxenburg and finally to Steyr. The current compilation dates from 1955.

Renaissance window

The window next but one comes partly from the Renaissance (1523) and shows the death and coronation of Mary in the upper half in a related composition . In the lower half there are full-length representations of Saint Berthold, Saint Catherine, Saint John the Baptist and Saint Wolfgang. Underneath are two panes with portraits of a donor family ("Wolfgang Püiller sein. Hausfr. And children") and on the right and left the coats of arms of the province of Upper Austria and the city of Steyr. The panes with the upper bodies of Saints Catherine and John the Baptist are original from the early 16th century, as are the portraits of the donors. The rest are additions from the late 19th century, executed by the Viennese court glass painters Geyling's heirs . The current compilation was arranged by the parish priest Johann Aichinger in 1889, in 1958 the panes were restored and reinserted after the war salvage. Large compositions such as the death and coronation of the Virgin Mary are rare in the 16th century, since with the beginning of the Reformation, glass painting lost its sacred function and was increasingly used for secular purposes. The provenance of the Renaissance panes is unknown; according to Eva Frodl-Kraft, an Austrian origin influenced by Augsburg graphics is possible.

Lamberg window

The oldest of the neo-Gothic windows is the Lamberg window, which was installed in 1891. It is a foundation of the Lamberg family and commemorates the murder of Franz Philipp von Lamberg in Pest during the Hungarian Revolution in 1848 . The stained glass is similar to an altarpiece : The " Predella " contains the dedication and explanatory inscription, above is the main picture with an allegorical representation of the event (an angel with the attributes of Austria wreaths the dying), above it as an image of the dragon fight of the Saint George. No secondary scenes and figures are used, this space is filled with ornaments. “Predella”, main picture and top picture are framed by floral motifs and architectural representations. The work, originally made for the Votive Church in Vienna , takes no account of the shape of the window and can also be used elsewhere. It differs from the other neo-Gothic windows that were later inspired by it, however, in its concentration on the main picture and the top picture. The design was made by the Jobst brothers and the executing company was Geyling's heirs.

  • Laxenburg window

  • Renaissance window with the death and coronation of Mary

  • The Lamberg window

The Margaret Chapel

The Margaret Chapel

The Margaret Chapel next to the parish church is likely to date from around 1430. It was first mentioned in a document in 1437 in a letter from Duke Albrecht V ( Albrecht II ). The builder is unknown, the plans for the Gothic roof turret are attributed to Hans Puchsbaum.

Urban classification

The Steyr parish church with the rectory, the late Gothic messner's house, the former cemetery complex and the Margaret Chapel towers imposingly over the old town. The tower of the Steyr Minster stretches like a raised index finger, which signals the location of Steyr for the surrounding area. The high plateau with the church complex is located in the immediate vicinity of the town square , which can be reached via a Renaissance staircase and the Pfarrgasse. The church complex was connected to the city fortifications with the former Gilgentor. Today there is still a fortification tower next to the rectory, which reminds of the course of the city wall and the strategically important place.

Views

  • Vicarage, Margaretenkapelle and Stadtpfarrkirche

  • The city parish church in its structural environment, seen from the opposite bank of the Enns

  • View from 1870, still with a baroque spire

literature

  • Roland Bachleitner: City parish church of St. Agidius and St. Kolomann in Steyr. Steyr 1999.
  • Erwin Hainisch: Upper Austria. Verlag Anton Schroll, Vienna 1977, ISBN 3-7031-0036-2 , Dehio manual 4.
  • Rudolf Koch, Bernhard Prokisch : Steyr parish church. Verlag W. Ennsthaler, Steyr 1993, ISBN 3-85068-366-4 .
  • Josef Ofner : Art Chronicle of the City of Steyr. In: Publications of the cultural office of the city of Steyr. Issue 30, 1972.
  • Johann Josef Böker : The choir of the parish church of Steyr and its builders. In: Austrian magazine for art and monument preservation. LVII (2003), pp. 213-232.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Rudolf Koch and Bernhard Prokisch: Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr, Ennsthaler 1993, ISBN 3-85068-366-4 , p. 25f
  2. ^ Johann Josef Böker : The choir of the parish church of Steyr and its builders , in: Österreichische Zeitschrift für Kunst und Denkmalpflege , LVII (2003), pp. 213–232.
  3. ↑ Valentin Preuenhueber: Annales Styrenses together with its other historical and genealogical writings. Nuremberg 1740, p. 218. Digital copy of the SLUB Dresden
  4. ^ Manfred Brandl - New History of Steyr. From Biedermeier to today. Steyr: Ennsthaler 1980 p. 67 ISBN 3-85068-093-2
  5. ↑ a b Christina Seidl: The war memorial at the parish church of Steyr in: Rudolf Koch and Bernhard Prokisch (eds.): Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , Ennsthaler 1993, ISBN 3-85068-366-4 , p. 307ff
  6. ↑ New history of Steyr, p. 74
  7. ↑ Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , register of persons: Entry Buric, Helmut
  8. ^ Josef Wallner: Little sister of St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna is being renovated. Article in the church newspaper of the Diocese of Linz No. 15, April 15, 2010 p. 9 (accessed on April 6, 2016)
  9. ^ Paul Stütz: Lack of money made the church renovation inventive. Article in the church newspaper of the Diocese of Linz No. 49, December 2, 2015 (accessed on April 6, 2016)
  10. ↑ New history of Steyr, p. 281.
  11. ↑ New history of Steyr, p. 66
  12. ↑ New history of Steyr, p. 74
  13. ↑ Historicism in Upper Austria Table: Main works of historicism in Upper Austria (viewed on April 1, 2010)
  14. ^ Johann Nimmrichter: On the polychromy of the north portal of the Steyr parish church in: Rudolf Koch, Bernhard Prokisch: Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , Verlag W. Ennsthaler, Steyr, 1993 p. 327 to 329 (tympanum relief and saints)
  15. ^ A b Rudolf Koch and Bernhard Prokisch: Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , Ennsthaler 1993 pp. 200 to 206
  16. ↑ Rudolf Koch and Bernhard Prokisch: Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , p. 109 ff
  17. ↑ Historical Art. A Gothic architectural monument in Austria - the parish church in Steyr called on August 8, 2011
  18. ↑ Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , p. 110
  19. ↑ Rudolf Koch and Bernhard Prokisch: Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , p. 116 ff
  20. ↑ Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr , p. 292
  21. ↑ Steyr online. Buildings: Margaretenkapelle Viewed 22nd October 2011

Web links

Commons : Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files
Commons : Stadtpfarrkirche Steyr  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 48 ° 2 ′ 15 ″  N , 14 ° 25 ′ 1 ″  E