Procession pole

Procession poles or procession sticks (also Stangerlitzer saints , angel sticks , saint sticks , guild sticks , candle sticks ) are handcrafted sticks that are carried during processions of the Roman Catholic Church . In the Bavarian region in particular, numerous poles decorated with figures of Mary and saints have been preserved from guilds and brotherhoods (their poles are also known as brotherhood poles ), which are often set up in the church all year round. Guild candles (ornate candle holders) are a type of procession pole that was mainly used by craft guilds.

History and Customs

With the emergence of the guilds, the guild poles were created, which were shown to the public as a demonstration of the developing self-confidence of the craftsmen in processions. Guild poles were first mentioned in 1688 in Leuchtenberg , 1765 in Grafenwöhr , 1772 in Eslarn . The customs of when these guild poles were carried on processions differed from place to place. In Eslarn all guilds carried their guild poles for the Corpus Christi procession. When a family member of a craftsman who belonged to a guild died, the two guild poles of the respective guild were carried at the funeral. Each guild had two poles. In Wiesau the guild poles were not worn during the Corpus Christi procession, but only came into action at the guild office on December 27th each year.

The guild poles survived the wars. You can see them in the churches in old photographs. In earlier art-historical descriptions of the churches they were mostly ignored. In the sixties and seventies of the 20th century, with the increasing separation of the church and normal everyday life, they were often perceived as old-fashioned, inappropriate, profane and disturbing and banned them from churches or at least removed their guild badges. Many a conservative sacristan saved her from his modern pastor in the attic. From the 1980s onwards, a new understanding of the art of bygone times awoke and the guild poles, where they still existed, were taken from the attics, restored and put back in the churches. The art-historical church leaders who have emerged since this time recognize their artistic and historical value.

Description and special features

Procession poles is the umbrella term for figures of angels and / or saints attached to one or more poles, or groups of figures or guild signs or lanterns. Procession poles that are marked with a guild mark are called guild poles. One can assume that originally all processional poles were provided with guild signs, but that some of these guild signs were either lost or intentionally removed. However, this is not always demonstrable. These poles without guild signs are called procession poles. There are simple guild poles, without an angel or saint figure, which only have the respective guild mark at their tip. Angel poles carry an angel who usually carries a guild sign on a sign in his hand. Holy sticks carry a saint who was regarded by a guild as a patron saint or who was pleasant to the guild for other reasons or who liked the founder of the stake. The guild symbol is either integrated into the figure of the saint or it is located as a cartouche on the pole. Candle sticks run out into a candlestick at the top. The guild sign is below the candlestick. Sometimes they also have an angel or a figure of a saint at the top that carries the candlestick in their hand.

Often times the guild poles appear in pairs per guild, i. H. per guild two saints or figures, which were perceived as belonging to one another and designed in relation to one another, each decorated a pole, so that, for B. at a funeral of a guild member to the left and right of the grave a bearer with a pole of his guild could stand. In the church, these two poles stood opposite each other on the male and female side, often with arms pointing towards one another.

Saints and guilds

Relationship between figures of saints and guilds:

Saint / figure group	assigned guilds	Places with guild poles
Ambrose	Wrought	Bärnau
Andrew (apostle)	Baker, miller	Winklarn
Barbara of Nicomedia	Woodworkers and Fireworkers	Winklarn
Barnabas	Weber	Winklarn
Bartholomew (Apostle)	Shoemaker, butcher	Mitterteich , Weiden idOPf.
Boniface	cutter	Leuchtenberg
Eligius	Blacksmiths, bottlers, plumbers	Tirschenreuth , Weiden idOPf.
Elisabeth of Thuringia	baker	Pastures idOPf.
Florian von Lorch	Müller	Wiesau
George	cutter	Winklarn
Faith	Carpenter, turner, comb maker	Auerbach
Mercy Seat , Trinity	Carpenter, hatter	Leuchtenberg, Neustadt / WN
Holy Family	Painter, baker, gingerbread maker	Leuchtenberg, Neustadt / WN
James the Elder	Tailor, shoemaker, painter, carpenter	Auerbach, Mitterteich, Tirschenreuth, Windischeschenbach
Jesus Christ	Butchers, millers, melbers, locksmiths, blacksmiths	Neustadt / WN, Waldthurn , Windischeschenbach
John the Baptist	Tailor, kit maker	Auerbach, Neustadt / WN, Weiden idOPf.
John (Evangelist)	Butcher, saddler	Leuchtenberg
Joseph of Nazareth	Carpenters, chimney sweepers, bricklayers, stonemakers, saddlers, sack workers, joiners, joiners, bakers, woodworkers and fireworkers	Auerbach, Neustadt / WN, Tirschenreuth, Waldthurn, Weiden idOPf., Wiesau, Winklarn
Jude Squidward	Draper	Tirschenreuth
Catherine of Alexandria	Smithy, Wagner	Tännesberg , Tirschenreuth
Lawrence of Rome	Weber	Winklarn
love	Carpenter, turner, comb maker	Auerbach
Luke (Evangelist)	painter	Pastures idOPf.
Mary Magdalene	Hairdressers	Pastures idOPf.
Mary (mother of Jesus)	Weavers, shoemakers, bricklayers, butchers	Leuchtenberg, Neustadt / WN, Winklarn
Martin	Wagner, blacksmith, tailor	Leuchtenberg, Winklarn, Schongau
Michael	Tailors, bricklayers, carpenters	Neustadt / WN, Winklarn
Noah	Carpenter	Tirschenreuth
Paul of Tarsus	Binder, Weber	Neustadt / WN, Waldthurn
Reinoldus	Stonecutters	Pastures idOPf.
Rochus of Montpellier	Bricklayer	Waldthurn
Guardian Angel	Carpenters, chimney sweepers, bricklayers, stonemasons	Auerbach
Simon Peter	Blacksmiths, wagons, bricklayers, locksmiths, metal construction, bakers, millers	Neustadt / WN, Waldthurn, Weiden idOPf., Winklarn
Thomas (Apostle)	construction	Pastures idOPf.
Wendelin	Weber	Weiding
wolfgang	Wagner, carpenter, draper, weaver, bricklayer	Bärnau, Neustadt / WN, Tirschenreuth, Waldthurn, Weiding, Winklarn

Images of procession poles

Procession poles in the Church of St. Georg in Ellingen :

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Procession pole in the church of St. Jakobus the Elder (Enchenreuth) in the dean's office in Hof (Saale) :

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Guild candles in the Church of St. Martin in Gundelfingen an der Donau :

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  Apostle Peter, patron saint of fishermen

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  St. Martin, patron saint of millers and bakers

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  St. Barbara, patroness of tailors

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  St. Vitus, patron saint of brewers

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  Cosmas and Damian, patrons of shoemakers, tanners and saddlers

See also

• Torste
• Cantilever
• monstrance

Web links

Commons : Procession pole  - collection of images, videos and audio files

literature

• Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . District Craftsmen's Association of Northern Upper Palatinate, Weiden 2000.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, p. 13.
2. ↑ ^{a b} Hans Schlemmer: History of the Eslarn market in the Upper Palatinate. Local government Eslarn, Eslarn 1960, pp. 97, 98.
3. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, p. 105.
4. ↑ ^{a b} Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, p. 20.
5. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, p. 5.
6. ↑ Otto Schmidt: St. Martin Amberg (= Small Art Guide No. 695, ZDB -ID 51387-8 ). 2nd, revised edition. Schnell and Steiner, Munich a. a. 1977, pp. 9, 14.
7. ↑ Eugen Trapp: Catholic parish church St. Laurentius Grafenkirchen and their side churches. Ms. Ant. Niedermayr Grafische Kunstanstalt, Regensburg 2001, ISBN 3-9807545-3-7 , p. 13.
8. ^ Richard Bierl, Bruno Servi, Elisabeth Huber: St. Vitus Tiefenbach. Verlag Ernst Vögel GmbH, Stamsried 2000, pp. 37-39.
9. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, pp. 5, 65-70.
10. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, p. 110.
11. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, pp. 30-37.
12. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, pp. 102, 116-124.
13. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, pp. 80-88.
14. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, pp. 19, 20.
15. ↑ Horst Lambel: Guild poles in the northern Upper Palatinate . 2000, pp. 4-7.