Tuesday, December 18, 2007

St. Jacob's Church in Rothenburg ob der Tauber

On Saturday we took another adventure to Rothenburg. It's not very far from us at all thank goodness. Our first stop was a sushi restaurant. Yuuuuuum. It seems like forever since I've had my favorite, Chirashi (sashimi served over sushi rice). It was a tiny place and it also served as a modern art gallery. There were alot of postersize photographs and this cute little felt mobile. Seriously, I want one!! Josh ordered his usual unagi (eel) which is one of our favorites.
After our bellies were full, we walked around the corner to this huge church that I've been wanting to go into. It's St. Jakobs Lutheran Church. Alot of this info I'm about to type is from the pamphlet they gave me.

St. Jacobs is dedicated to the apostle (engl. St James). It is one of the churches on the pilgrimage route to St. James grave in Santiago de Comostela in Spain. St. James became the patron saint of the pilgrims and merchants. he can be recognized by his pilgrims-staff and the St. James-scallop on his hat.

The High Alter (1466), also called the Twelve Apostles Alter, is one of the finest high altars in Germany. The excellent wood carvins are the work of Swabian master carvers. Most impressive is the crucifis with the four angels representing (right) Faith and Prayer and (left) Unbelief and Doubt. Under the crucifix are the six saints: elizabeth, James, Virgin Mary, John, Leonard, and Antonius the Hermit. The altar painting are by a Nordling master artist Friedrich Herlin. The predella shows Christ with the twelve Apostles. The altar wings depict the following scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary: Annunciation, Visitation, Nativity, Circumcision, Adoration of the Magi, Presentation in the Temple, and Death of Virgin Mary (two panels). The rear sides depict the Legend of St. James.



The stained glass windows in the east chancel, 56 feet high, are of great merit, and their glorious rich colouring is best seen in the morning sunlight. The left window shows scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary, the centre window scenes from Christ's Life and Passion, surrounded by Prophets. the right window is taken up with Christ's work of Redemption through the Sacraments.



To the left of the High Alter is the Tabernacle-formly a place of sanctuary-, a beatuiful stone sculpture of the 14th century, with an unusual representation of the Holy Trinity. On the right of the altar is an early stone sculpture (Christ the King).

The chancel pews are the work of a Rothenburg master craftsman and date back to 1514. Above them on the north wall are the coats of arms of Rothenburg patricians and mayors. On the south wall are the portraits of former preachers after the Reformation.




The Alter of the Virgin Mary is in the north aisle (about 1520) is the work of an unknown master. In the shrine: Coronation of the Virgin Mary, in the predella: Death of the VIrgin Mary. On the altar wings: Virgin Mary and Child; St. Ann, Child, and Virgin Mary.


The pulpit dates from about 1854.



The new organ in the west gallery was consecrated in 1968. It has two consoles, six manuals, and more than 5000 pipes.


I didn't get a chance to go upstairs b/c the kids were misbehaving. We walked towards the middle of town to find the Christmas market that I had been wanting to go to for the past couple of months.
The first thing we did was let the kids ride on a carousel which was kinda big mistake. For one, it was way past their naptime. They did not want to get off and a fit followed. Geeeeeze. We tried to bribe them with some freshly made Crepes with Nutella. Nope. Here's some photos for you to drool over.


I have lots more pictures from Sunday's adventure. We went to the HUGE Christmas market in Nuremburg. GORGEOUS. Lots of new scrap stuff too.

xoxo

5 comments:

Scrapping My 2 Precious Gems said...

The crepes look soooo incredibly yummy! Love the pics of the church. GORGEOUS! I love visiting historical sites.

Tonya said...

The church is beautiful, great photos. Yummy crepes.

Cathy De Los Santos said...

Why do they always seem to make churches so elaborate and picturesque. It's something to think about lol.

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