Basilica of Saint Servatius
Encyclopedia
Maastricht
Maastricht is situated on both sides of the Meuse river in the south-eastern part of the Netherlands, on the Belgian border and near the German border...
(The Netherlands) at the Vrijthof square, is a mainly Romanesque
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
church dedicated to Saint Servatius
Saint Servatius
Saint Servatius was bishop of Tongeren—Roman Atuatuca Tungrorum the capital of the Tungri—one of the earliest dioceses in the Low Countries. Later in his life he fled to Maastricht, Roman Mosae Trajectum, where he became the first bishop of this city...
.
History
The present-day church is probably the fourth church that was built on the site of the grave of Saint ServatiusSaint Servatius
Saint Servatius was bishop of Tongeren—Roman Atuatuca Tungrorum the capital of the Tungri—one of the earliest dioceses in the Low Countries. Later in his life he fled to Maastricht, Roman Mosae Trajectum, where he became the first bishop of this city...
(c. 310-384), an Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n missionary who became the first bishop of Maastricht. A small memorial chapel on the saint's grave was replaced by a larger stone church by bishop Monulph
Monulph
Monulph was a sixth-century bishop of Tongeren-Maastricht. A shadowy figure, his date of death is traditionally given as 588. ALegend holds that he founded a church in 558 at the river confluence that would become Liège. His birthplace is given as Dinant, his father's name as Randace.He is also...
in the 6th century. The ever increasing flow of pilgrim
Pilgrim
A pilgrim is a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journeying to some place of special significance to the adherent of a particular religious belief system...
s made it necessary to build a large pilgrim church in the 9th/10th century. This church was replaced by the present-day Romanesque structure, which was built in several stages. The nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
was built in the first half of the 11th century, the transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
in the second half of the century, and the choir
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
and westwork
Westwork
A westwork is the monumental, west-facing entrance section of a Carolingian, Ottonian, or Romanesque church. The exterior consists of multiple stories between two towers. The interior includes an entrance vestibule, a chapel, and a series of galleries overlooking the nave...
in the 12th century. The latter were built during a period in which the chapter
Chapter (religion)
Chapter designates certain corporate ecclesiastical bodies in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Nordic Lutheran churches....
of Saint Servatius kept close ties to the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. Several of the church's provosts
Provost (religion)
A provost is a senior official in a number of Christian churches.-Historical Development:The word praepositus was originally applied to any ecclesiastical ruler or dignitary...
were chancellors of the German Empire.
The sculpted Bergportaal, at the south side of the church, was begun around 1180 and can be considered early Gothic. Also in Gothic style are the chapels along the side aisles, which were added in the 14th and 15th centuries, the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
ceiling, and parts of the southern transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
. In 1556 a late Gothic spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
was added between the two existing westwork towers. In 1770 the entire westwork received Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
towers. Over the centuries the interior of the church underwent many changes.
In 1797 the chapter was closed down and the church was used as a horse stable by the French troops. In 1804 it became a parish church once again. Between 1866 and 1900 the church underwent two major restorations, led by famous Dutch architect Pierre Cuypers
Pierre Cuypers
Petrus Josephus Hubertus Cuypers was a Dutch architect. His name is most frequently associated with the Amsterdam Central Station and the Rijksmuseum , both in Amsterdam. More representative for his oeuvre, however, are numerous churches, of which he designed more than 100...
. In 1955 a fire caused Cuypers' Gothic Revival westwork spire to fall through the roof of the church, which made another thorough restoration necessary (1982–1992). During this latter restoration, Cuypers' colourful interior decoration scheme was largely removed.
Art historical significance
The westworkWestwork
A westwork is the monumental, west-facing entrance section of a Carolingian, Ottonian, or Romanesque church. The exterior consists of multiple stories between two towers. The interior includes an entrance vestibule, a chapel, and a series of galleries overlooking the nave...
of the Basilica of Saint Servatius is considered one of the most interesting twelfth century constructions in the Meuse
Meuse
Meuse is a department in northeast France, named after the River Meuse.-History:Meuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
valley region. The architectural sculpture
Architectural sculpture
Architectural sculpture is the term for the use of sculpture by an architect and/or sculptor in the design of a building, bridge, mausoleum or other such project...
in the interior of the westwork belongs to the highlights of Mosan art
Mosan art
Mosan art is a regional style of art from the valley of the Meuse in present-day Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany. Although the term applies to art from this region from all periods, it generally refers to Romanesque art, with Mosan Romanesque architecture, stone carving, metalwork, enamelling...
. The 34 elaborately carved capitals depict scenes from books well-known to the canons
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
, such as Saint Augustine's
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo , also known as Augustine, St. Augustine, St. Austin, St. Augoustinos, Blessed Augustine, or St. Augustine the Blessed, was Bishop of Hippo Regius . He was a Latin-speaking philosopher and theologian who lived in the Roman Africa Province...
De Civitate Dei and various Bestiaries
Bestiary
A bestiary, or Bestiarum vocabulum is a compendium of beasts. Bestiaries were made popular in the Middle Ages in illustrated volumes that described various animals, birds and even rocks. The natural history and illustration of each beast was usually accompanied by a moral lesson...
. Recurrent themes are: botanical ornaments, animals, humans fighting with animals, humans entangled in plants, and humans engaged in daily activities. A close relationship has been established by art historians between these Maastricht capitals and those in the Rolduc
Rolduc
Rolduc is the name of a medieval abbey in Kerkrade, the Netherlands, which is now a Roman Catholic seminary and an affiliated conferencing center.-History:...
crypt, the Schwarzrheindorf (Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
) dwarf gallery
Dwarf gallery
A dwarf gallery is an architectural ornament in Romanesque architecture.It is a natural development of the blind arcade and consists of an arcaded gallery, usually just below the roof, recessed into the thickness of the walls...
, and the Wartburg
Wartburg
The Wartburg is a castle overlooking the town of Eisenach, Germany.Wartburg may also refer to:* Wartburgkreis, a district in Germany named after the Wartburg* Wartburg , former East German brand of automobiles, manufactured in Eisenach...
palace near Eisenach
Eisenach
Eisenach is a city in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated between the northern foothills of the Thuringian Forest and the Hainich National Park. Its population in 2006 was 43,626.-History:...
.
The choir ceiling shows remnants of ceiling paintings, depicting the visions of Zechariah
Book of Zechariah
The Book of Zechariah is the penultimate book of the twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew and Christian Bible, attributed to the prophet Zechariah.-Historical context:...
. This may be the only surviving work by the group of Maastricht painters, who received high praise from Wolfram von Eschenbach
Wolfram von Eschenbach
Wolfram von Eschenbach was a German knight and poet, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of his time. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry.-Life:...
in his Parzival
Parzival
Parzival is a major medieval German romance by the poet Wolfram von Eschenbach, in the Middle High German language. The poem, commonly dated to the first quarter of the 13th century, is itself largely based on Chrétien de Troyes’s Perceval, the Story of the Grail and mainly centers on the Arthurian...
.
Religious significance
The grave of Saint Servatius in the church cryptCrypt
In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....
and the many relic
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
s in the church treasury
Treasury of the Basilica of Saint Servatius
The treasury of the Basilica of Saint Servatius is a museum of religious art and artifacts inside the Basilica of Saint Servatius in Maastricht, the Netherlands.-History:The treasure of the church of Saint Servatius was put together over many centuries...
, have drawn large numbers of pilgrim
Pilgrim
A pilgrim is a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journeying to some place of special significance to the adherent of a particular religious belief system...
s throughout the ages. Since the 14th century (but perhaps earlier) a seven-yearly pilgrimage was organized in cooperation with Aachen Cathedral
Aachen Cathedral
Aachen Cathedral, frequently referred to as the "Imperial Cathedral" , is a Roman Catholic church in Aachen, Germany. The church is the oldest cathedral in northern Europe and was known as the "Royal Church of St. Mary at Aachen" during the Middle Ages...
and Kornelimünster Abbey
Kornelimünster Abbey
Kornelimünster Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in Kornelimünster, since 1972 a part of Aachen , in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.- First foundation :...
, attracting tens of thousands of visitors to the region. This Heiligdomsvaart tradition continues in our days. The most recent Heiligdomsvaart took place in July 2011.
Nowadays, the Basilica of Saint Servatius is the main church of the Deanery
Deanery
A Deanery is an ecclesiastical entity in both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of a Dean.- Catholic usage :...
of Maastricht, which is part of the Diocese of Roermond
Diocese of Roermond
The Diocese of Roermond is a diocese of the Catholic Church in the Netherlands. The diocese is one of the seven Roman-Catholic dioceses suffragan to the Archdiocese of Utrecht....
. The church continues to be one of the two principal religious centers of Maastricht (the other one being the Basilica of Our Lady
Basilica of Our Lady (Maastricht)
The Roman catholic Basilica of Our Lady is a Romanesque basilica in Maastricht, The Netherlands, dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption. The church is often referred to as the Star of the Sea, after the church's main devotion, Our Lady, Star of the Sea...
). The church was made a Basilica Minor by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
during his visit in 1985.
Sources
- Elizabeth den Hartog: Romanesque sculpture in Maastricht. Maastricht, 2002
- A.M. Koldeweij: Der gude Sente Servas. Assen/Maastricht, 1985
- Aart J.J. Mekking: De Sint-Servaaskerk te Maastricht. Utrecht/Zutphen, 1986