Fortified Church of St. Michael
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The fortified church of St. Michael is an east-facing Roman Catholic church with a west tower in the cadastral parish of St. Michael in the market town of Weißenkirchen in the Wachau in Lower Austria . It is a branch church of the parish Wösendorf in the dean's office in Spitz and is under monument protection according to the ordinance of the Federal Monuments Office .
History of the church
The fortified church of St. Michael was the seat of the formerly extensive parish and mother church of the Wachau . It stands on the site of a small Celtic sacrificial site.
- around 800: Charlemagne erects a Michael shrine instead of the Celtic sacrificial site
- 987: The first documentary mention
- 1159/62: the transfer to the St. Florian Monastery is documented.
- 1395: Foundation and construction of the Gothic Karner (ossuary) with Gothic cross rib vault
- 1500–1520: Romanesque stone church is replaced by a late Gothic church
- 1500–1530: The defense system with 5 towers, drawbridge and church were built. The weir system was reinforced several times until the 17th century.
- 1532: Spanish auxiliaries set fire to the Gothic church tower
- 1544: The west tower (originally Gothic) was given a renaissance style finish after a fire.
- 1630: A fire led to the collapse of the nave vault
- 1631–1643: Master builder Cyprian Biasino erects an early Baroque church vault and encases the Gothic buttresses
- 1784: Parish is dissolved by Emperor Joseph II . Since then the church has been a branch church of the parish Wösendorf.
- 1948: Renovation work begins on the fortified church, which is in danger of collapsing
- May 26, 1968: The fortified church is reopened by Bishop Franz Žak
Building description
The church stands on a partially artificial terrace on Donauuferstraße. The late Gothic staggered hall building with a choir has a baroque interior and a striking western defensive tower from the first quarter of the 16th century, which was restored in 1964/65. The church and the neighboring Karner from the early 14th century are surrounded by the cemetery and the well-preserved fortifications from the 15th century.
Weir system
The weir system consists of an originally around 7 meter high surrounding wall, which is partially designed as a lining wall due to the difference in level towards the Danube . This wall was raised in 1575 and reinforced in 1605 and 1677. A three-story, mighty round tower is integrated in the southeast corner of the complex, which was previously connected to the Karner by an arched bridge. A Schwibbogen marked 1886 has been preserved from this arch bridge . The round tower has machicolations with three-sided cheeks on corbels , numerous key notches and, on the second and third floors, walled door openings to the former battlements of the cemetery wall and an entrance bay on the north side .
Since the completion of the Donauuferstraße, built between 1954 and 1958, the round tower has been used as a lookout tower. It is equipped with sgraffito depictions of the history of the Danube Valley by Rudolf Pleban .
A second round tower in the northeast corner of the weir system, which originally served as a road block, partially collapsed in 1805 and was removed.
A former gate tower with a wooden bridge over a moat has been preserved at today's cemetery entrance.
church
Nave and choir outside
The four-bay nave with a drawn-in three-bay choir, which ends in a five-eighth end, rises above a surrounding cornice . Both the nave and the retracted choir are covered with a gable roof with dormers , which are designed as gable dormers or as straight dormers . The facade is structured by gabled buttresses with water hammer, which are crowned by heavily weathered finials at the choir . The tracery windows have a pointed arch with three-leaf, fish-bubble and round arch shapes.
On the north side of the nave, between buttresses, there is a late Gothic chapel with a pointed arch portal and shoulder-arched access to the former crypt as well as a short three-lane tracery window. On the south side, under a walled-in Romanesque relief head, presumably a former keystone , there is a richly barbed shoulder arch portal with a late Gothic door leaf. On the side buttresses there is a red inscription from the 16th century and two walled-in Romanesque head sculptures.
The facade of the choir is marked “1521” on the north and south sides . On the north side of the choir, a two-storey sacristy with a square floor plan is built, which is labeled "1519" . The sacristy extension has pointed arch and rectangular windows and on the north side a barbed pointed arch gate. On the east side is the exit to the crypt, which is accessed through a shoulder arch portal. Above it is a gable console with three coats of arms in relief and the designation "1522" .
On the roof ridge of the choir are copies of seven terracotta figures , the originals of which are kept in the Krems City Museum. They depict deer and horses , but are known as " The Seven Hares of St. Michael " and as such are the subject of a legend of the same name.
On the east side of the choir there are wall painting fragments depicting the Crucifixion and the Last Judgment .
Nave and choir inside
The nave is a three-aisled, four- bay staggered hall with pointed arches on pillars. After the fire of 1630, which led to the collapse of the nave vault, it was restored as a groin vault by Cypriano Biasino between 1631 and 1634 on the pillars covered with pilasters .
The three-aisled vestibule arched under the ribs and marked with "1505" opens up to the nave in profiled pointed and round arches. Two crossed shoulder arch portals form the entrances to the galleries.
A profiled pointed arch on the north side of the nave forms the access to a niche-like chapel extension , which is vaulted with a ribbed vault with keystones in relief. The keystones are designed as a rosette , coat of arms and grapevine and have heads in relief on the sides.
A slightly retracted, pointed triumphal arch , which is marked with "1749" , the year of the renovation, forms the transition to the choir. Bundled services with canopy niches on head consoles support the ribbed vault of the choir. The keystone in the east is four-pass- shaped and decorated with the Lamb of God , another has a coat of arms labeled "1523" .
Access to the pulpit is via a shoulder-arched staircase, that to the sacristy via a richly profiled portal. The sacristy is vaulted by a ribbed vault marked “1519” on the keystone .
The sacrament niche has wrought iron fittings with five locks. The session is under a profiled curtain arch .
tower
The four-storey square west tower is set halfway into the nave and is labeled "1509" , the quarry stone masonry is unplastered in the lower area. The facade of the tower is structured by cornices and stone blocks and has some scaffolding holes. On the west side there is a barbed pointed arch portal with a shoulder arch insert.
The sound floor was set up in 1544 after the fire of 1532, the sound windows are designed as ogive tracery windows. The tower is crowned by arched battlements and round cantilevered corner turrets over a serrated frieze and has several loopholes .
There is a sundial on the south side of the tower .
The tower has a ribbed vault on the ground floor and a ribbed vault on the first floor, which was used as a medieval salvage room. The upper floors are defensive and difficult to access.
Karner (ossuary)
Between the apse of the fortified church and the fortified tower on the south-east corner of the fortification is the Karner, built by the Wösendorfer couple Seyfried and Margarete Freytl, and built after 1395. It is a tall, narrow building with an eastern five-eighth end, stepped strong buttresses, two-lane pointed arched windows with four-pass tracery and lancet windows with three-leaf ends.
The smooth gable wall in the west is crowned by a six-sided projecting roof turret on a console with a gable wreath and a stone pyramid helmet. Among them are the remains of a monumental wall painting from the last quarter of the 15th century, which depicts St. Christopher with margrave hat as the patron saint of the country , as is the case inside the Schöngrabern parish church .
The interior has a single bay with a ribbed vault on chalice consoles. The keystone bears a heraldic shield with three hearts. The Karner Chapel includes:
- Bone pieta adorns the altar from the baroque period
- Widow's braids from approx. 1500–1700
- Josephinian folding coffin for adults
- Josephinian folding coffin for children
- 3 mummies from the period 1150–1300, since 1929 in glass showcases
- Outside on the west side: image of St. Christophorus with the trains of Duke Maximilian I (HRR) around 1500
Furnishing
church
The high altar dates from 1690 and was transferred here from the Stein parish church in 1748 . He has a by pilasters articulated altarpiece with blasted segmental arch gables and an articulated by columns essay. The altarpiece shows the Madonna , who is enthroned on a globe. Saints Joseph , Nicholas and Clare as well as some angels and putti are depicted as assistant figures .
The oval top picture shows God the Father with a globe and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove hovering over it and was probably painted by Johann Bernhard Grabenberger. The high altar bears statues of Saints Anthony , Sebastian , Rochus and Johannes as well as Katharina and Barbara on the top, which is crowned with a statue of the Archangel Michael .
A rococo tabernacle with a crowning canopy rises above the masonry altar table, which is flanked by two angel figures with chandeliers .
About 15 widow's braids are kept under the gallery , which the women cut off as a sign of renunciation when their husbands died.
The left side altar has a picture frame retable with a blown triangular gable from the second half of the 17th century with a picture of the Holy Family , which is believed to have been made by Martin Johann Schmidt . The upper picture, also from the second half of the 17th century, shows St. Barbara . On the side there are painted board figures of St. Lawrence and St. Sebastian .
The right side altar consists of a simple volute substructure with an altarpiece of St. John Nepomuk from the end of the 18th century, which is labeled " Thadäus Joannes 1760 ". On the side of the carved foliage and latticework top are statues of adoring angels and a reliquary pyramid .
The sarcophagus altar in the side chapel has a volute wall retable with rocaille decoration from the third quarter of the 18th century. The altarpiece shows St. Florian and the upper picture shows another saint, probably St. Bartholomew from the school of Martin Johann Schmidt around 1768. The flanking statues depict St. Nicholas and a holy bishop.
The pulpit with a volute basket and high reliefs of the four evangelists was created in 1740. The drapery back wall bears a relief " Good Shepherd " in an oval frame. At the edge of the conical sound cover sit putti with symbols of the church fathers , at the top there is a figure of St. Michael.
On a Gothic console stands a half-length statue of Christ of Sorrows from around 1420. Remains of the original polychrome can be found in the baroque canopy of a Pietà from around 1500. Polychrome statues from the second half of the 15th century Saint Sebastian and a man of sorrows.
The wooden lid with fittings of a twelve-sided marble baptismal font on a round base from 1560 is labeled "1610" .
On the steps to the choir there are some partially cut medieval grave slabs. The steps to the side chapel are made of tombstones with incised crosses, probably from around 1300.
The following other tombstones are available:
- Small inscription plate 1635
- Joannes Josephus Nogrelli 1715
- Martin Seelmayr 1727
- Heliaus Eggenfeltner 1618 with coat of arms
- Bartolomäus Talmayr 1641
- Hans Christoff .ümüller 1672
- Petrus Spindler 1637
- Monumental coat of arms tombstone Leuthold Wolfenreuter 1424
A plate with a shield in relief and a detached plate labeled “1631” are set into the floor.
organ
The case and work of the organ from 1650 with a manual and eight stops by an unknown organ builder were originally in another church before they were transferred to St. Michael. The positive of the instrument is integrated into the balustrade of the gallery, the case has a blown gable top, and angels playing music are depicted on the painted double doors. The gallery parapet with wave masking tracery bears statues of eight apostles and a statue of Christ from the beginning of the 16th century, which were partially added during a restoration in 1964.
Karner
Since the cemetery in St. Michael has only limited capacity, the Karner served as a repository for the bones of the deceased to make room in the cemetery. In the Karner the so-called “skull pietá” reminds of this original purpose. This is to bones and skulls that are aufgeschlichtet in eastern Five-eighth circuit of the room into a pyramid and the most part of the fallen of the Battle of Loiben likely date back to 1805, as the bullet hole an Austrian musket suggests at one of the skull.
This skull pietá also has a symbolic character and reminds us of how on Good Friday Mary was laid her dead son in the lap.
In display cases are mummy remains , probably dating from the Middle Ages, as well as three Josephinian community coffins dating from the 1785th
literature
- " Dehio manual. The art monuments of Austria. Lower Austria north of the Danube. “Edited by Evelyn Benesch, Bernd Euler-Rolle u. a. Verlag Anton Schroll & Co, Vienna 1990, ISBN 3-7031-0652-2 , p. 1020 ff.
See also
Web links
- Fortified Church of St. Michael
- Burgenkunde.at: St. Michael fortified church in the Wachau
- Filial church St. Michael in "Churches on the River"
- The hares of St. Michael on "Sagen.at"
Individual evidence
- ^ Lower Austria - immovable and archaeological monuments under monument protection. ( Memento from June 1, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) . Federal Monuments Office , as of June 6, 2012 (PDF).
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j “ Dehio manual. "
- ^ The seven hares of St. Michael accessed on February 4, 2013
- ^ Notices from Lower Austria No. 9/2008 of the Office of the Lower Austrian Provincial Government, p. 18
- ↑ Information from the parish office in Wösendorf, but details are unknown
- ↑ Austrian Federal Monuments Office, accessed on February 5, 2013
Coordinates: 48 ° 22 ′ 17.1 ″ N , 15 ° 26 ′ 18.8 ″ E