Trier cathedral treasure
The Trier Cathedral Treasury is one of the most important collections of church treasure art in Germany .
It is located in the High Cathedral of St. Peter zu Trier , the oldest bishop's church in Germany and mother church of the Trier diocese .
history
The relics of Trier Cathedral were kept in a treasure house built around 1200 on the north side of the choir . After the display of relics in the cathedral became more popular in the 14th century , the Baden building was built on the south side around 1480 , which houses the cathedral archive on the upper floor and to this day also the cathedral treasury.
Inventories from 1238, 1429 and 1776 as well as an engraving from 1655 provide detailed information about the Trier cathedral treasure, which has been carefully guarded for centuries despite numerous wars. It was not until the 18th century that large parts of it were used to finance the first coalition war against the French revolutionary troops: 399 kilograms of precious metal were given to the electoral mint and melted down in 1792. Only twelve works of treasure art survived this loss. In the 19th and 20th In the 19th century, numerous works found their way into the cathedral treasury from secularized churches, through donations, on loan, from the art trade and also through new production.
In the last years of the Second World War , the Trier Cathedral Treasury was housed in the Hainer tunnel in Siegen , together with the Aachen Cathedral Treasure and the Essen Cathedral Treasure, to protect it from air raids . - The art treasures in the tunnel were discovered by US troops in April 1945, placed under their own guard and partly returned to their homes in May 1945 thanks to the advocacy of the then mayor of Siegen, who was dismissed on April 24, 1945 due to Nazi charges, Alfred Fissmer . Around 4,000 objects ended up in the newly established art goods collection point in Marburg in June at the endeavors of the American art protection officer Walker Hancock .
Curator / Scientific Supervision
The custodian of the cathedral treasure is currently Auxiliary Bishop Jörg Michael Peters , the scientific supervision is provided by the Museum am Dom .
Former curators
- 1971 to 2015: Franz Ronig
collection
The cathedral treasure includes remarkable feats from late antiquity , Romanesque , Gothic , Baroque and the 19th and 20th centuries. Century, important manuscripts from the Middle Ages and liturgical vestments . Only a selection of special pieces is described below.
Late antiquity
- Reliquary procession relief
- The relief from the 5th century , carved from ivory , 13 × 26 cm in size and probably made in Constantinople , is a major work of late antiquity. It shows a detailed picture of a relic procession and the Byzantine court ceremony: a procession moving from left to right with two clergymen sitting on a magnificently decorated four-wheeled cart pulled by two mules and bringing a reliquary into a town.
middle Ages
- Code of Simeons
- A Greek lectionary ( Codex Simeonis ) from the 10th / 11th century and a needle-tied cap of Simeon von Trier (around 980 / 990-1035) are kept in the cathedral treasure.
- Pericope book by Kuno von Falkenstein
- The Pericope Book , written by Archbishop Kuno von Falkenstein in 1380 , deals with the life of Christ.
- Helmarshausen Gospels
- The gospels from the Helmarshausen monastery were made there around 1100 by the Benedictine monk Theophilus Presbyter ; In the early 2000s it was extensively restored. The book cover of the Gospel is a showpiece of goldsmithing, it is set with gemstones , rock crystals and fiery gold- plated figures embossed in copper sheet and symbolizes Christ and redemption; the evangelist symbols stand for incarnation, death, resurrection and ascension.
Romanesque
- Andreas portable altar
- The Andreas portable altar or Egbert shrine is a box-shaped collective reliquary that is considered to be one of the most important works of Ottonian goldsmithing .
The reliquary was made in the Trier Egbert workshops on behalf of Archbishop Egbert von Trier (~ 950–993); an inscription identifies him as the donor of the reliquary. The reliquary was named "Andrew's portable altar" after the most important relic that it contained: a sandal of the Apostle Andrew . In addition to this, the reliquary contained links of the chain used to bind Saint Peter , the whiskers of Peter, a nail from the cross of Christ and the drinking bowl of Saint Helena .
- Crook of a bishop's staff
- Found in the grave of Archbishop Heinrich von Finstingen († 1286) in 1851 , the 28 cm long bend of a bishop's staff is made of copper , decorated with Limog enamel and gilded. On the rod sleeve decorated with Romanesque tendrils sits an openwork knob, which consists of twisting monsters with long tails and tendrils of flowers.
- Reliquary of the Holy Nail
- According to legend, Trier Cathedral has been in the possession of a holy nail given by Empress Helena since the 4th century . Archbishop Egbert von Trier (977–993) had a splendid reliquary made by a goldsmith, which precisely took up the 21.4 cm long nail. The reliquary is decorated on all sides with precious stones and enamel plates . The outer shape of the reliquary reflects the shape of the nail and is therefore considered a speaking reliquary that provides information about its content to the observer who is not familiar with reading. The reliquary has a hinged lid that allows the relic to be touched or shown to the believers. The relic was kept in the Andreas portable altar, carried along in processions and shown during healing instructions , where it is said to have healed the blind several times. In addition, the relic of the Holy Nail was used in taking oaths.
- Gozbert smoke barrel
- The 21.5 cm high censer , created around 1100, is used to spread incense : grains of incense are sprinkled on glowing charcoal, evaporate and spread a fragrant scent by swinging the bronze cast barrel on a chain during processions and liturgical services. The inscriptions on the vessel, the architecture and the program of figures proclaim a complex message of salvation history.
19./20. century
- Historicist works from the studio of the Trier goldsmith and art collector Josef Brems-Varain (1859–1912)
- Neo-Gothic chalice
- The Trier clergy had the 23 cm high chalice made by the Aachen goldsmith Martin Vogeno (1821–1888) and presented it to Matthias Eberhard when he was elected Bishop of Trier in 1867.
Web links
- Official website at www.dominformation.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schmid: Safe custody [...] and losses and new acquisitions at www.dominformation.de/bauwerk/domschatz/
- ↑ Klaus Dietermann: Siegen under the swastika - an alternative city tour , p. 38 f .: Chapter The Hainer Stollen / Hainer Hut . Publishing house of the Society for Christian-Jewish Cooperation Siegerland e. V., Siegen 1983
- ↑ Steel: Bunkers and galleries for air defense in the Siegen area , p. 53. With photos of US soldiers with the works of art seized
- ↑ The Trier Cathedral Treasure ; accessed on October 21, 2017
- ↑ Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schmid: Reliquary procession at www.dominformation.de
- ↑ Sysse Gudrun Engberg: Trier and Sinai: Saint Symeon 'Book . In: Scriptorium 59. 2005, 132–146 with plates 19–24.
- ^ Press service of the Diocese of Trier: Loans from Trier Cathedral Treasury are showpieces at the exhibition in Paderborn . July 31, 2006
- ↑ Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schmid: Krümme a bishop's staff at www.dominformation.de
- ↑ Wolfgang Schmied: Heiliger Nagel ( memento from December 17, 2015 in the web archive archive.today ) in Trier Cathedral, on dominformation.de.
Coordinates: 49 ° 45 ′ 22 " N , 6 ° 38 ′ 35" E