9/26 - Excursion Day - part 5

After the cathedral, it's back to the bus...

The tour people seemed to make a big deal that we were going to lunch at a castle...but, really, it was hardly more than a manor house...

 

and lunch was served in the converted stables...

 



...and while some of the group toured the house (not worth it, they said...), I opted to enjoy the garden, which was still quite nice...

 

and then, of course, it was back to the bus...

 

 

...with  the promise of another castle to tour...oh, goody....



9/26 - Excursion Day - Part 4

Aachen Cathedral

.
..okay, I'll admit it: once we walked in...

 

 

and walked upstairs, all I heard was BLAH-BLAH-BLAH...I was overwhelmed with a sensory overload of patterns....

on the floors...

 

on the walls...

 

 

in the windows...



and...OMG...the ceilings...

 - the few other things I noticed, were nice and interesting, but stayed in my head as mere afterthoughts...

Charlemagne's throne...doesn't lok very comfortable, does it?

so...if you want to know about Aachen Cathedral and it's history,

I guess you'll just have to look it up...

I will!

9/26 - Excursion Day - Part 3

The Aachen cathedral treasury displays sacral masterpieces of the late Classical, Carolingian, Ottonian and Staufian period ...The Cathedral Treasury in Aachen is regarded as one of the most important ecclesiastical treasuries in northern Europe...RELICS are the mortal remains of saints or any other object connected with these saints; purpose is to remind the faithful of exemplary people who often modelled their lives on that of Christ to the last.  Reliquaries are where relics are kept.  (guide to Aachen Treasury).

 

The Treasury of Aachen Cathedral (aka Charlemagne and his stuff)..

The Golden Book Cover:

Made around 1020, it was used to decorate the front of the Carolingian gospel book and was probably part of a donation of altar fittings by Emperor Henry II; the center panel is Byzantine ivory, with the gold panels showing the symbols of the four Evangelists and describing four major events in the life of Christ.

Gregory's Mass Oak altarpiece:
Made in Hildesheim about 1525 constructed for the altar of the Anna Chapel;

form mostly 19th century with fragments of the original form
In the central shrine is seen the panel knows as the Mass of Gregory, where Christ as the Man of Sorrows appears before Pope Gregory at the celebration of the Eucharist; the wings depict the apostles with their attributes

 

Head of a Cantor's staff...the eagle dates to around 1470
 

This triptchon was painted in Cologne around 1515/20 and was originally designed for the Church of the Carmelites in Cologne; in 1872 it came to Aachen to the Church of Our Lady

The Ivory PanelMade in the Meuse region around 1100...four holes for nails point to its original use as part of a book-cover; the three panels show scenes from the life of hrist - bottom, birth of Christ; middle baptism in the River Jordan; top, the Crucifixion

 

The Arm Reliquary:  Behind the rock crystal pane, the bones (ulna and radius) of Charlemagne's right forearm can be seen.  A document wrapped around the bones testifies that they were transferred from the shrine of Charlemagne to the reliquary on Oct-12th, 1481.  The reliquary was donated by the French king, Louis XI (made from gilt silver in Lyon).



my view of Dave when he's on vacation...
 

The Reliquary Bust of Charlemagne:

Probably made in Aachen around 1349 with Charles IV being regarded as the donator...when he was crown king in Aachen in 1349, the crown jewels were still in the possession of the heirs of Ludwig of Bavaria, so Charles wor the crown which can now be found on the bust...inside the bust, in the anatomically correct position, the cranium of Charlemagne is preserved...the bust is made of silvr repousse' work, which is partly gilded, and decorated with antique precious stones...










The Cross of Lothair:

Made toward the end of the 10th century...one of the most valuable objects of medieval goldwork; the base dates from the 14th century.

The core consists of oak; the front side (with a cameo of Augustus - symbolically depicting the heavenly Jerusalem as a golden city resplendent with precious stones, as described in Revelation of St John, Rev 21). the rock crystal mounted on the lower half of the vertical beam dates to the 9th century and carries an inscription that translates to "Christ, help King Lothair".  The inscription framesthe profiles of a male head, identifying the picture as that of King Lothair II (855-869).

The Ivory Book Cover

Early 9th century; silver frame and bound hymnal 14th century

Six events from the Resurrection of Christ:  Meeting on the way to Emmaus; the Emmaus mean; Disciples discuss in Jerusalem their meeting with Christ; Christ shows his wounds, the blessing of the disciples outside town, and the readin gof the Prophets

The Citrine
...yellow transparent quartz in claw setting
...does not originally belong to the 11th century
bed-plate; holds a cross-shaped recess for a relic;
in the 19th century the stone was still attached
to the bust of Charlemagne

Proserpina Sarcophagus:

made in Rome...dates back to 2nd Century AD...brought from Italy
on Charlemagne's orders...probably served as Charlemagne's tomb from his death in 814 until his canonization in 1165 ...relief is myth of Proserpina....

detail

Next:  the Cathedral...