Pilgrimage church Alt Krüssow
The former pilgrimage church Alt Krüssow is a Protestant church in the Pritzwalker district Alt Krüssow in the Brandenburg district of Prignitz . The late Gothic hall church built at the beginning of the 16th century was, as a place of pilgrimage, next to the monastery Stift zum Heiligengrabe and the Wunderblutkirche in Bad Wilsnack, for a short time one of the most important pilgrimage destinations in Prignitz .
history
The church was donated by Havelberg Bishop Johann von Schlabrendorff (1501–1520) and consecrated in 1520. The stepped gable of the east wall of the nave with its delicate décor references the southern transept gable of the pilgrimage church in Bad Wilsnack , which is more than fifty years older . The similarly designed gables of the Holy Grave Chapel in the Stift zum Heiligengrabe monastery in Prignitz between 1517 and 1523 and the village churches in Falkenhagen and Wulfersdorf indicate the same construction company.
Soon after, with the Reformation , the church lost its importance as a place of pilgrimage. The first Protestant church visitation took place in 1543 and only the chalice donated by Bishop Johann von Schlabendorf is mentioned in the protocol of the valuables that were once there. Today the church Alt Krüssow belongs to the Protestant parish Heiligengrabe. The Friends of the Wallfahrtskirche Alt Krüssow e. V. for the preservation of the historic building. Since 2006, the east gable, the roof of the nave and the tower windows have been repaired with the help of the German Foundation for Monument Protection .
Pilgrimage tradition
The patroness of the pilgrimage church Alt Krüssow is St. Anna , the mother of Mary and thus the grandmother of Jesus Christ . According to tradition, a skirt of St. Anna was kept as a relic in Alt Krüssow . A miraculous picture of Anne is also reported. This made this place a pilgrimage destination . Those suffering from the plague and lame pleaded for help from the patron saint. In the 18th century, a large number of crutches are said to have been kept in the pilgrimage church, which were offered as thanks for alleviating physical ailments. With the Reformation, the pilgrimage church lost its importance. Since 2011, the tradition of pilgrims in Prignitz has been linked with the 22 km long Annenpfad , which connects the pilgrimage sites of Heiligengrabe, Alt Krüssow and Bölzke (both have been districts of Pritzwalk since 2002 and 1974 respectively ).
Outer shape
The late Gothic hall was built in the typical Prignitz mixed construction of field stones and bricks . The lower area of the nave is taken up by the irregular, indented field stone masonry with ashlar scoring of the joints of the first construction phase. Brick masonry from the third construction phase then follows up to the eaves. An almost square chapel from the second phase of construction is added on the north side. A neo-Gothic tower with a richly decorated portal was built on the west side in 1878. There is a richly decorated stepped gable on the east wall.
As dendrochronological studies show, the construction of the church began before 1510. Up to the consecration in 1520 there were obviously changes to the plan combined with an increase in the building to more than double the original plan: in the field stone masonry of the outer walls of the nave there are bricked-up pointed arch openings that were to become windows. The inner walls also show traces of large blinds, which were closed again during the construction of the brick walls above during the third construction phase. The reinforced masonry between the panels should presumably support a lower vault.
Furnishing
The eastern part of the central nave is spanned by a star vault, the western part and also the chapel by a ribbed vault . The simple painting dates from the end of the 19th century. A colorful ornamental glass window decorates the chancel.
The main altar, a late Gothic winged altar (around 1520) dedicated to Maria and Anna, is currently in the Protestant parish church of St. Nikolai in Pritzwalk. In the center shrine under the central depiction of the coronation of Mary by Christ and God the Father, the holy clan is depicted: Anna with her three husbands (back right), her three daughters (back left and right) and their seven children (foreground). According to a legend from the 9th century, Anna married Cleophas a second time after the death of her first husband Joachim, Jesus' grandfather, and after his death Salomas became her third husband. According to this legend, Jesus had six siblings, including later disciples and apostles, who are represented in the altar.
Another altarpiece from 1510, which also shows St. Anna as the central figure, was in the north chapel. It is currently in the Annenkapelle at the cloister in the monastery Stift zum Heiligengrabe .
The nave has some special features: to the right of the altar there is a piscina , i. H. a water basin with drainage to the outside into the ground, with which the priest could clean the hands and the liturgical vessels. There is also an iron hook to which a water vessel was attached.
Another special feature is a small - 1.60 m wide and 0.97 m deep - safe-like windowless room, which is accessible via two medieval oak doors to the north of the nave. It is said that valuables were stored here.
Notable details in the north chapel are the four figural glazed corner consoles that support the star vault. Shown are beings with long ears and sticking out tongues, one of which is playing on a bagpipe. The baptistery of the Nikolaikirche in Pritzwalk , which was also built in the early 16th century and has a similar gable design, has similar figurative consoles .
literature
- Hartmut Kühne, Sirk Schumann: The pilgrimage church of St. Annen in Alt Krüssow . Lukas Verlag, Berlin 2006, ISBN 3-936872-61-9 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ The church of Alt Krüssow
- ↑ Homepage of the Friends of the Wallfahrtskirche Alt-Krüssow e. V.
- ↑ Stefanie Kellner: The miraculous Anna. In: Monuments 3/2018. Magazine for monument culture in Germany. ISSN 0941-7125. P. 33.
Coordinates: 53 ° 9 ′ 21.1 ″ N , 12 ° 15 ′ 30.7 ″ E